March 2024

How can your health system specialty pharmacy’s (HSSP) clinical outcomes improve? Measure your HSSP value and impact, and do it consistently.

That’s according to CPS specialty pharmacy experts Drs. Jessica Mourani, Brandon Newman, and Susan Trieu. The group recently held a panel discussion to review the results from CPS’s third annual Patient Impact Report. With insight gathered from our network of HSSPs, the Patient Impact Report is a framework to help hospitals and health systems understand and implement the latest clinical measurement best practices to drive value and outcome improvements.

Here are 3 key lessons from the conversation along with Dr. Mourani’s advice to help you elevate your patient impact.

Health System Specialty Pharmacy Measurement Trends in 2024

Here's what's trending in HSSP clinical outcomes measurement this year:

1. The library of HSSP clinical outcomes research is growing.  HSSP clinical outcomes research is advancing, Dr. Mourani explains:
   
   "In 2019, less than 20 studies were published about HSSP clinical outcomes. Today, just four years later, we see dozens of manuscripts published every quarter. The growth is encouraging, but HSSPs must be ready to keep up and demonstrate value."
   

2. HSSPs are now expected to use data and insights prove the "why" behind their patient outcomes. Drug spend is at an all-time high, Dr. Mourani says.
   
   "We found HSSPs are now being asked to prove their value: to health system leadership, payors, manufacturers, and other stakeholders. They must be ready to marry clinical data and patient-reported measures demonstrate why clinical results are happening, and how the learnings can spur impactful changes."

3. CPS's Patient Impact Report offers a gold standard for HSSP clinical outcomes measurement. We hope you take advantage of the value the Patient Impact Report can offer to your HSSP.
   
   "The Patient Impact Report proves HSSP pharmacists and pharmacy liaisons  offer best-in-class patient outcomes," says Dr. Mourani. "Hospitals and health systems are encouraged to use the methods and benchmarking from the report to measure their specialty pharmacy value."
   
   Dr. Mourani's parting advice?
   
   "Don’t be afraid to make changes to your protocols. As new information and evidence is gathered, best practices and protocols are continuously evolving based on guideline updates, expert opinions, landscape changes. We invite our HSSP peers to join us in our journey to measure and improve patient care."