How to Prepare for Comprehensive Medication Reviews (CMR)

A comprehensive medication review, or CMR, is an integral part of the relationship and service provided by your local pharmacy.

Without regular CMRs, both patients and pharmacies can remain uneducated on the best next steps to take to provide the best possible assistance to patients.

At RxMile, we appreciate the unique bond that is created between patients and pharmacists, especially in the independent pharmacies that residents rely on. Thanks to the community spirit that independent pharmacies help inspire, CMRs become something a patient doesn't worry about and feels much more comfortable about attending.

Compare this to the larger chain pharmacies that can often be located in more densely populated areas. It can suddenly make attending an appointment or picking up medication feel much more daunting.

So how can you make this appointment easy for yourself and the patient in your pharmacy? It is pretty simple and, if carried out correctly, can alleviate some of the stress the patient may be feeling regarding their condition.

What is a comprehensive medication review?

If you have not yet hosted a comprehensive medication review (CMR), it would be wise to ensure you are prepared for all aspects. A CMR is a face-to-face or over-the-phone consultation where the patient and pharmacist discuss the current plan of medication. With the information the pharmacist extracts, they will be able to identify if there are any medication-related issues and then works on a project to resolve them.

The CMR aims to provide the patient with enough information to know and understand more about their medication confidently. This then allows them to take more ownership of their situation.

What does a CMR workflow look like?

The simple way to plan a CMR is through a few simple steps. Following the below will make it much easier to facilitate and run smoothly.

• Assess the timeline for review
• Enhance referral information (dispensing history etc.)
• Arrange consultation
• Prepare additional information such as handouts, web links, etc
• Identify potential medication issues

How long does a comprehensive medication review take?

One of the first things you should do when setting up comprehensive medication reviews is to allow sufficient time. Unlike interventions that may only investigate and discuss one particular aspect of the patient's health, a CMR will incorporate all issues relating to health and medication. This means that you could be spending an hour per patient, in some cases, longer.

As a result of the potential duration, you should allocate enough teams to your pharmacy roster for the times you need to hold a CMR. Especially if you have planned for more than one on the same day.

What do I need when hosting a comprehensive medication review?

Before meeting the patient, you will want to have acquired the information that allows you to assess the current situation as best as possible. This information should include a list of all the medications currently prescribed to the patient, confirmation of any disease states, identification of any potential issues related to the drug, and a fill history.

With this information, you will be able to assess what requires the most attention and construct a strategy that helps you and the patient move forward. Even if you have all this information, it is advisable to consult the patient to see whether they are taking any other forms of medication. This includes things like vitamins and supplements. This will help make your assessment much more thorough.

Pharmacists are trained to be experts in the knowledge of how medicine works, so a set of pre-prepared questions relating to the patient's medication and condition are vital.

How far in advance should CMRs be planned?

As one CMR finishes, you should already plan the next one, especially if the patient is taking the medication long-term. Typically, a CMR takes place annually but can be more frequent if necessary. If the patient is regularly changing medication or has been admitted to the hospital several times, you should consider increasing the frequency of a CMR. You can utilize this planning through your current systems or look into the viability of incorporating new tech to keep the processes running smoothly.

Integrate CMRs into your daily workflow

By making CMRs a focus of your pharmacy, you can increase patient care levels and better manage time, cost, and revenue generation.

• Dedicate set days and times to the completion of CMRs
• Follow an established agenda
• Have easy-to-use and easy-to-action paperwork
• Follow a particular protocol for informing relevant parties of the next steps
• Have a process for the completion of any documents and the submission of CMRs

How will a comprehensive medication review benefit my pharmacy?

Aside from the points we touched upon earlier. There are additional benefits an independent pharmacy can extract from CMRs.

• Personalized care of each patient helps you as a pharmacist learn more about how a patient is progressing but also helps build more of a bond than you would find in big chain pharmacies.
• Collaborative care makes for a more comfortable patient, focusing solely on them. This approach to care also means that working alongside other healthcare professionals to gain knowledge and insight strengthens your pharmacy in reputation, service levels, and expertise.
• Reduced costs to the business are always welcome, and implementing CMRs instantly allows for stricter cost control.
• Satisfaction for patients and the pharmacy is achievable. The relationship between the two is worth so much more at the independent pharmacy level that witnessing the patient's progress means something to everyone.
• A more structured organization results in a more fluid operation that benefits the patient and the employees.

Potentially, you could say the benefits can all be seen as scalable, each one being able to be improved upon to help deliver better results. This is something that, as an independent pharmacy, makes such a difference. Where the control is yours, you can actively make a difference to patients and staff by implementing a procedure.

With RxMile to assist you, we make the CMR process even more accessible. Should your pharmacy operate CMRs regularly, our prescription delivery service means that your patients never miss out on their vital medications. By fusing telehealth and logistics, life is just made easier. Benefits for the pharmacy. Benefits for the patient. Seamless integration into your current system means that with RxMile, you can easily manage the next steps of a CMR. And if you don't yet have a prescription delivery service in place, our team can guide you through the easy process of starting a medication delivery company as well as starting up your own independent pharmacy.

Speak to our team today to make pharmacy life easier, patient life healthier, and business more successful.