Vaccines for Older Adults.

Several vaccine-preventable diseases-influenza, pneumonia, herpes zoster, and pertussis-threaten the health of older adults in the United States. Both the costs associated with treating these diseases and the potential to increase morbidity and mortality are high for this patient population. Pharmacists and other health care professionals play a significant role in ensuring the elderly patient receives the recommended vaccines at the recommended intervals.

The Utility of Continuous Temperature Monitoring of Refrigerators in a Long-Term Care Facility.

BACKGROUND: It is the current practice in most long-term care facilities to use manual logs when documenting refrigerator temperatures. This process is commonly associated with poor or fabricated compliance, little oversight, and documentation errors, both because of overt omissions and unsubstantiated values. It is also well-established that medication storage requirements are mandated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). This analysis demonstrates the potential risk of poor cold-chain management of medications and establishes the possible utility of digitally recorded continuous temperature monitoring over manual logs. This small case-oriented review of a large nursing facility's storage process attempts to expose the risk associated with improper medication storage. OUTCOMES: The primary outcome of the study was to determine if a difference existed between temperature logs completed manually compared with those done with a continuous monitor. METHODS: American Thermal Instruments (ATI) thermometers were placed into each of the existing refrigerators in a 147-bed nursing facility. Through a mobile app, the data recorded in each refrigerator were compiled into daily reports. Data were collected from a total of 12 refrigerators, 3 of which were medication refrigerators. Logging intervals were done over a 263-minute period and compiled the lowest recorded temperature, highest recorded temperature, and the average temperature for each refrigerator. In addition, reports showing the real-time results were compiled using the ATI DataNow service. RESULTS: All of the refrigerators analyzed had highest temperature recorded readings exceeding the maximum allowable temperature (50°F for refrigerator). All of the refrigerators had lowest temperature recorded readings below the minimum allowable temperature (32°F for refrigerators). All of the refrigerators also reported average temperatures outside of the allowable temperature range. The results necessitated the replacement of a refrigerator and the evaluation of a dairy refrigerator in the food service area. This resulted in consistent measurements within the allowable range. CONCLUSION: Following this analysis, it can be concluded that the common assumptions about the effectiveness of manual temperature logs should be verified. It can also be concluded that continuous temperature monitoring improves temperature-reporting accuracy. Proper medication storage is mandated by CMS; risk does exist that an improperly stored vaccine, biologic, or medication could lose effectiveness. While it has not been proven, improved medication storage offered from continuous monitoring could result in improved medication viability and hence improved patient outcomes associated with those medications.

Preparation Times and Estimated Costs for Vancomycin Formulations: Does the Difference Matter?

Objective Infections from methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus are increasingly treated in longterm care facilities, but long-term care pharmacies face high costs in the provision of sterile vancomycin for intravenous administration. This study compares pharmaceutical costs of outsourced, compounded, and room temperature premixed vancomycin formulations in a long-term care pharmacy. Design This retrospective observational study reviewed 124 orders of vancomycin. Means for total pharmacy preparation time, pharmacist labor time, and extrapolated time over complete course of treatment were compared for three vancomycin preparations: outsourced, compounded by pharmacy, and room temperature premixed vancomycin formulations. Cost calculations were generated using ingredient costs as reported by the pharmacy and median pharmacist labor costs as published from national sources. Results Mean total preparation times and pharmacist preparation times were shortest for premixed vancomycin. Over full courses of treatment, mean pharmacy preparation time for compounded was 5 hours 3 minutes (mean of 28 treatments) and 2 hours 8 minutes for premixed (mean of 54 treatments). Data on pharmacist time in outsourced orders were not available. Total pharmacy costs were $993.94 for compounded vancomycin, $2220.34 for outsourced, and $809.36 for room temperature premixed vancomycin. Conclusion There were reduced preparation times for room temperature premixed vancomycin compared with compounded and outsourced formulations for skilled nursing facilities. As multiple drug-resistant organism infections are increasingly treated in long-term care, finding cost-effective approaches to medication provision from pharmacies is critical.

Role of Pimavanserin Treatment-Continuity on Discharge From Long-term Care: Assessing the Quality of Antipsychotic Medication Review.

Objective: To investigate the role of (1) antipsychotic medication review (AP-MR) documentation quality of Minimum Data Set 3.0 (MDS) surveys, and (2) treatment-continuity on discharge-to-community and clinical outcomes among long-term care (LTC) residents treated with pimavanserin. Design, Setting, and Participants: A retrospective cohort analysis of Parts A, B, and D claims from Medicare 100% sample merged with MDS data from June 2016 through December 2018 was conducted. Residents with more than 100-day LTC stay and 1 pimavanserin prescription or more with completed antipsychotic-use MDS question were selected. AP-MR documentation quality (ie, gradual dose reduction [GDR] attempts, clinical contraindication to GDR), discharge-to-community, and clinical outcomes (eg, falls, fractures) were obtained from MDS. Treatment-continuity was assessed from Part D claims. Data Analysis: Descriptive statistics (frequencies, proportions, Chi-square tests, and means) and adjusted logistic regressions (ORs with 95% CIs reported association between pimavanserin treatment-continuity and discharge-to-community. Results: Of 4,021 eligible residents, 29% (n = 1,182) attempted a GDR per AP-MR MDS documentation. Approximately 41% (n = 1,665) had documentation showing GDR was clinically contraindicated, yet 39% (n = 645) still attempted GDR. While overall discharge-to-community rates were low, it was significantly higher (P < 0.05) among LTC residents continuing (14.94%; n = 380/2,546) versus discontinuing (11.84%; n = 171/1,444) pimavanserin. OR for treatment-continuity was 1.96, 95% CI 1.50-2.55. Residents continuing pimavanserin had lower incidents of falls (2.8% vs 9.4%), hip fractures (0.29% vs 0.69%), and pelvic/femur fractures (0% vs 0.92%) versus those residents who discontinued it. Conclusions: Among LTC-stay residents, high discordance between GDR rates and AP-MR MDS documentation quality was observed. Pimvanserin treatment-continuity showed greater likelihood of discharge-to-community; continued documentation training can ensure appropriate antipsychotic use with a balanced benefit:risk profile.

Practical Insight Into Anticoagulation for an Aging Population.

Anticoagulation is almost always required as a part of treatment for atrial fibrillation, but it is also one of the most potentially dangerous pharmacologic strategies. Recently, a number of guidance documents have been released with respect to anticoagulation. Some elements of the guidelines potentially create conflicting considerations for clinicians charged with selecting the safest and most effective anticoagulation protocol, especially for patients older than 75 years of age.

Expanding Opportunities in the Postacute Long-Term Care Setting: Bringing Medication Safety to the Next Level.

Skilled nursing facilities and nursing homes are care settings that offer increasing opportunities for pharmacists to take the lead when addressing the new updated Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) requirements coupled with enhanced quality measures reporting. In addition, the complexity of the medication-related needs and comorbidities of the patients served in long-term care facilities promotes pharmacists practicing to the top of their license. Medication stewardship needs to be an interdisciplinary team activity led by the pharmacist. This article highlights areas of opportunity and innovation focusing on the four areas that reflect new regulations and enhanced scrutiny by CMS: psychotropic medications, transitions in care, antibiotic stewardship, and pain management.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease in Post-acute/Long-term Care Settings: Seizing Opportunities to Individualize Treatment and Device Selection.

INTRODUCTION: The burden of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in post-acute/long-term care (PA/LTC) settings is high, and many patients do not receive guideline-recommended care. METHODS: An interprofessional expert panel of PA/LTC professionals convened to discuss the unmet medical needs in patients with COPD in PA/LTC settings, and to make recommendations for the assessment of COPD patients to individualize the selection of maintenance treatment. RESULTS: Unmet needs observed in patients with COPD are described in addition to new tools for assessing individual patient abilities and appropriate device selection for maintenance treatment. CONCLUSION: COPD management in PA/LTC settings needs to be reevaluated and updated to help reduce exacerbations, hospitalizations, and readmissions.

Treating dyslipidemic patients with lipid-modifying and combination therapies.

Updated guidelines from the National Cholesterol Education Program give greater emphasis to lipoproteins other than low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) than previous guidelines. Although statins remain first-line therapy for most patients to lower LDL, combination therapy is the next logical step in achieving goals in patients with mixed dyslipidemia or elevated LDL despite statin therapy. As the prevalence of diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and atherogenic dyslipidemia rises, the importance of treating the total lipid profile becomes even more crucial. Niacin, fibrates, and bile acid sequestrants are effective in combination with statins in lowering LDL, triglycerides, and total cholesterol levels and increasing high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL). Although combination therapies may increase the risk of myopathy, both fibrate-statin and niacin-statin combinations are considered safe. In addition, niacin-statin therapy reduces atherosclerotic progression and coronary events. New pharmacologic formulations exist that will further affect treatment: a single-tablet combination of lovastatin and extended-release niacin is available, as is ezetimibe, a cholesterol-absorption inhibitor. In all, both HDL and triglyceride levels correlate with cardiovascular risk and should be considered secondary targets of therapy. Combination therapy can be safe and effective and can be constructed to affect all lipoprotein parameters.