Drug Topics - December 10, 2007 - (Page HSE5)

www.drugtopics.com DECEMBER 10, 2007 DRUG TOPICS HSE 5 Professional Practice > > > R.Ph. named director of UConn’s Evidence-based Practice Center Ellen Whipple Guthrie, Pharm.D. T he Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality (AHRQ) recently awarded the University of Connecticut a five-year contract and up to $1 million per year to establish a new Evidence-based Practice Center (EPC). The center will evaluate different drug therapies— specifically those that are common, expensive, and/or significant to the Medicare and Medicaid populations. Pharmacists have been involved in some capacity at the other EPCs throughout the country, but this is the first center to have a pharmacist as its director and three additional pharmacists on its core team. Said the center’s director, C. Michael White, Pharm.D., FCP FCCP associate professor , , of pharmacy, University of Connecticut, and an expert in cardiac medicine, “Our center adds a unique perspective to the evidence-based practice center program because of the extensive pharmaceutical expertise of our core team.” The University of Connecticut EPC will be managed by the school of pharmacy in collaboration with the business school and Hartford Hospital. Key core team members include several clinicians, many of whom have worked together for almost a decade. Hartford Hospital’s Jeffrey Kluger, M.D., will be the center’s associate director, and Craig Coleman, Pharm.D., assistant professor of pharmacy practice at UConn, is the center’s project manager and methods chief. Robert A. Quercia, M.S., R.Ph., director of drug information services at Hartford Hospital and adjunct associate professor of pharmacy at the university, will serve as the medical editor. And John Vernon, the university’s assistant finance professor, who recently completed a term at the Food & Drug Administration, will be the center’s health policy chief. According to White, the vast experiences of these various individuals will benefit the EPC. “You need to have practitioners from multiple healthcare disciplines involved in deciding which questions you ask in order to provide the best, most cost-effective answers.” History of the EPC program A 1997 initiative was launched to promote evidence-based practice in healthcare decision-making. Twelve EPCs were established and given five-year contracts to review all the relevant scientific literature on the medical topics assigned to them. The findings of the EPCs—documented in evidence reports or technology assessments—emphasize explicit and detailed documentation of methods, rationale, and assumptions. When applicable, the evidence reports and technology assessments include meta-analyses and cost analyses. The specific topics examined by the EPCs generally fall within broad areas such as adult health, pediatric medicine, maternal health, geriatrics, rehabilitation, dental health, mental health, substance abuse, alternative care, and preventive care. To date, almost 200 evidence reports have been completed and are being used by federal and state policymakers, professional organizations, and insurance companies to assist them in providing the highestEPCs in the United quality, most effective, States and Canada and most cost-effective Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, healthcare treatments Technology Evaluation Center and delivery options. Duke University1 The EPC program ECRI Institute1 has been expanded to inJohns Hopkins University clude 14 centers in the McMaster University United States and CanaOregon Evidence-based Practice Center2 da (see table). Three speUniversity of North Carolina cialize in conducting technology assessments University of Southern California for the Centers for Stanford University—University of Medicare & Medicaid California, San Francisco Services, and one of the Tufts—New England Medical Center1 centers concentrates on University of Alberta supporting the work of Minnesota Evidence-based Practice Center the U.S. Preventive SerUniversity of Ottawa vices Task Force. Vanderbilt University University of Connecticut Evidence-based What lies ahead? Practice Center The University of Con1 Focuses on technology assessments for Centers for Medicare & necticut EPC was expectMedicaid Services 2 ing its first topic by the Focuses on evidence reports for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (ref: http://www.ahrq.gov/clinic/epc/#note1) middle of November. According to White, while the center’s core team has been given a list of potential topics to rank in order of preference, staffers will not necessarily be granted the topic(s) they wish to evaluate. Topics the new UConn center will review include common medications, exorbitant treatments, and therapies particularly significant for Medicare and Medicaid populations. Each year the center will be charged with writing about seven reports. At the end of the five-year period, UConn, if invited, can participate in the EPC for another five-year term. THE AUTHOR is a writer based in Atlanta. http://www.drugtopics.com http://www.ahrq.gov/clinic/epc/#note1

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Drug Topics - December 10, 2007 Latebreakers Latebreakers in Depth Letters Health-System Edition - Cover Story Clinical Practice Professional Practice Special Report Technology Community Practice Unraveling Medicare 150 Years of American Pharmacy Rx Care In the Pipeline Cover Story: Fair or foul? Self-Care Chains and Business Government and Law Continuing Education: Natural Medicines for Bone Health New Products Advertisers Index Classified Viewpoint

Drug Topics - December 10, 2007

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