Outcomes Study: Optimizing Care and Reducing Cost - The Impact of Health-System Specialty Pharmacists in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Management

Members of our team had the opportunity to present a new poster abstract, "Optimizing Care and Reducing Cost: The Impact of Health-System Specialty Pharmacists in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Management", at the NASP 2025 Annual Meeting & Expo.

Authors:

Ryan VanSice, PharmD, BCPS, CSP; Nick Pham, PharmD, CSP; Casey Fitzpatrick, PharmD; Andrew Wash, PharmD, PhD; Jessica Mourani, PharmD; Ana I. Lopez-Medina, PharmD, PhD

Background:

• Patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) are often hospitalized secondary to respiratory worsening or acute exacerbation.¹
• The medical costs associated with IPF can lead to substantial economic burden, with annual estimates of around $110 million in the U.S.¹
• The involvement of health-system specialty pharmacies (HSSPs) within multidisciplinary teams has demonstrated cost avoidance in other specialties.²

Objectives:

• To evaluate potential costs avoided due to HSSP pharmacist interventions performed for patients diagnosed with IPF.
  

Read about the team's findings by downloading the outcomes study below.

¹Mooney JJ, Raimundo K, Chang E, Broder MS. Hospital cost and length of stay in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. J Med Econ. 2017;20(5):518-524. doi:10.1080/13696998.2017.1282864

²Georgieva D, Markley B, Declercq J, Choi L, Zuckerman AD. Cost avoidance from health system specialty pharmacist interventions in patients with multiple sclerosis. J Manag Care Spec Pharm. 2024;30(4):336-344. doi:10.18553/jmcp.2024.30.4.336