Transforming Pharmacy, One Collaboration at a Time

The Pharmacist to Pharmacist (P2P) Buprenorphine Resource Initiative for Dispensing Guidance and Education (BRIDGE) project aims to identify and mitigate pharmacy-level barriers to dispensing buprenorphine for opioid use disorder (OUD) in rural Appalachian communities.

Focus groups of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians working in high- and low-dispensing counties informed the development of a peer pharmacist educational outreach initiative. Surveys and dispensing data evaluate changes in pharmacist attitudes and behaviors following the intervention.

The P2P team hopes to identify strategies that can be implemented statewide to increase access to buprenorphine in community pharmacies and improve care for patients with OUD.

Learn more about BRIDGE here.

P2P BRIDGE is funded by the Foundation for Opioid Response Efforts

CARE-KY (Collaborative Approach to Raising Education and Immunization in Kentucky) is a project designed as a collaboration between local community pharmacies and their respective county extension offices, with assistance from the land grant offices of the UK Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment. Building off the success of our work in the EXCITE initiative, the primary objective is to increase COVID-19 and other adult vaccine access in underserved communities by fostering collaborative relationships. We are working with Kentucky counties that have low vaccine rates and high social vulnerability. The project team, including student pharmacists, will plan and execute vaccine education and administration events, utilizing tools and resources from the CDC and KDPH playbooks. This initiative, funded through the CDC, is a collaborative effort with the Kentucky Pharmacists Association to overcome vaccine hesitancy and barriers, linking patients with essential healthcare services.

The College of Pharmacy actively collaborated with the UK Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment (CAFÉ) and Kentucky State University, the state’s oldest Historically Black Colleges and Universities member, through the Extension Collaborative on Immunization Teaching & Engagement (EXCITE) initiative. This project, funded by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture and the CDC, aimed to address health disparities among rural and underserved communities by increasing vaccine access. Our efforts focused on a collaborative approach between local community pharmacies and local extension, drawing on the strength of both institutions to overcome vaccine hesitancy and barriers to immunization through community vaccine events, development of educational resources, and local communication channels. Pharmacists played a critical role in this initiative, leveraging their accessibility and established infrastructure to deliver vaccines and improve immunization rates. The continued expansion of this pharmacy model exemplified our commitment to creating healthier communities across the state.

As part of our ongoing commitment to transform pharmacy practice, we proudly participated in the Flip the Pharmacy initiative, which aims to transition community-based pharmacies from point-in-time, prescription-level care processes to longitudinal, patient-level care processes. This initiative focuses on identifying and adopting best practices for workflows that enhance the delivery of clinical services. Since joining in October 2020, our efforts have been bolstered by the involvement of 29 pharmacies, supported by 2 academia coaches and 5 practice transformation coaches, to drive meaningful change in our practice models and improve patient care outcomes. Over just a two-year period, we supported the submission of 34,224 plans, with a monthly average of 73 A1C recordings and 3,626 blood pressure documentations.

"Transforming Pharmacy Practice: Sustainable Billing Solutions in Kentucky and Beyond" is a project funded by the Community Pharmacy Foundation. The project aims to improve vaccine safety counseling services across community pharmacies in Kentucky by establishing a network of pharmacist coaches. These coaches will collaborate with pharmacies to implement comprehensive vaccine safety counseling and assist in billing Medicaid for these services. The initiative seeks to address gaps in vaccine education, reduce vaccine hesitancy, and optimize billing processes to ensure financial sustainability for pharmacies. Building upon the infrastructure developed through our efforts with Flip the Pharmacy, this project aims to transform pharmacy practice and enhance the delivery of public health services in underserved communities.

The PROTECTS (Pharmacist-led Recruitment Opportunities to Enhance Community Testing of infectious agents and other inflammatory markers) project focuses on community monitoring of infectious agents and inflammatory conditions. By leveraging pharmacists as trusted community healthcare professionals, PROTECTS aims to recruit patients, particularly in rural communities, to participate in testing and monitoring efforts. Building on a successful feasibility study, the project is developing a comprehensive registry of individuals interested in community-focused outpatient research. This initiative addresses public health priorities by enhancing surveillance and understanding of disease prevalence and immune response in real time. It aims to minimize community spread, protect healthcare infrastructure, and improve public health outcomes.