The American Society of Consultant Pharmacists (ASCP) Foundation has been awarded a grant in the amount of $93,465 from the Center for Technology and Aging for a research project utilizing Monitor-Rx to optimize the medication regimens of older adults. The ASCP Foundation was selected as one of five grant recipients out of 47 applicants to the Center’s Medication Optimization Diffusion Grants Program.

The purpose of the grants program is to encourage further use of technologies that help improve medication use by older adults with chronic health conditions, lead to improvements in the cost and quality of care, and improve medication reconciliation, medication adherence, and/or medication monitoring.

Monitor-Rx is a unique web-based clinical tool that associates medication effects with physical, functional, and cognitive decline and provides medication monitoring recommendations to foster early recognition of adverse drug effects that can be avoided, managed, or reversed. The ASCP Foundation’s project will utilize Monitor-Rx to optimize the medication regimens of older adults in three practice sites that provide comprehensive pharmacist services. The project’s goals are to:

- Increase clinicians’ knowledge of medications as a cause or aggravating factor contributing to physical, functional, or cognitive decline, which should lead to more referrals to pharmacists for medication review.

- Identify medications an individual is taking that may cause, aggravate, or contribute to common geriatric conditions, which will assist clinicians in the problem identification process when evaluating complex medication regimens and inform pharmacists’ recommendations for changes in drug therapy.

- Reduce anticholinergic medication burden to reduce the risk for physical and cognitive decline or improve physical/cognitive function.

- Reduce the number of inappropriate and unnecessary drugs an individual is taking to reduce costs and avoid potential medication problems.

Upon receiving notification of the grant award, ASCP Foundation Executive Director Lisa Gables commented, “Monitor-Rx has been in development for more than a decade, evolving from a stand-alone software program to its current Web-based format. This project provides an excellent opportunity to demonstrate its effectiveness in diverse clinical practice sites serving older adults, which we believe will lead to replication in other sites.”

Monitor-Rx is a joint venture of the ASCP Foundation and the Interactive Aging Network (IANet), a non-profit consultancy that supports national aging services organizations, foundations, and government agencies in the use of information technology to enhance programs and expand services. Rey Muradaz, Chief Technology Officer of IANet and consultant in the development of the Monitor-Rx technology, will provide technical support to implement Monitor-Rx at the project sites. “We are excited to be involved in this project to demonstrate the effectiveness of Monitor-Rx in optimizing the medication regimens of older adults,” said Muradaz. “We look forward to working with the ASCP Foundation to make this project as successful as it can be.”

The Center for Technology and Aging is devoted to helping California and the nation more rapidly implement technologies that improve home and community-based care for older adults. Through research, grants, public policy involvement, and development of practical implementation tools, the Center serves as a resource for all those seeking to improve the quality and cost-effectiveness of long-term care services. It was established in 2009 with a generous grant from The SCAN Foundation and is located at the Public Health Institute in Oakland, CA.

The Interactive Aging Network is a non-profit, strategic consultancy dedicated to helping aging services organizations realize their full potential. IANet helps organizations through the early part of their life cycle, from concept to business planning to developing and launching new services. IANet helps clients understand how information technology can streamline operations, enhance programs, and expand services and, when effectively used, can simplify communication, stimulate shared learning, and provide an evidentiary base for ongoing improvement activities. Among its achievements is the National Council on Aging’s BenefitsCheckUp.org initiative, a decision support service to determine a user’s potential eligibility in over 1,300 benefit programs throughout the nation.

Source
ASCP Foundation