Putting Pharmacies First
Pharmacy First consistently seeks out ways for our pharmacies to lower their DIR fees, while also being able to improve their patient’s quality of life. We have seen how hard the pharmacies within our network are working with their patients, so we wanted to start highlighting these pharmacies in our Quarterly Blog! In these, we hope to congratulate a high performing pharmacy who has stood out amongst the crowd; while also sharing their knowledge and experience on what has worked for them to improve their own independent pharmacy.
Currently, the healthcare system is trending towards a proliferation of value-based purchasing arrangements in which payment for services is tied not just to a set fee per service, but also to an incentive for providers who can demonstrate improvements in patient care. To proactively take on this trend, Pharmacy First has worked with Pharmacy Quality Solutions (PQS) to allow pharmacies within our network to obtain EQUIPP® at a vastly discounted rate! EQUIPP is an innovative performance information management platform that was designed to help pharmacists thrive in a value-based, quality-focused environment.
Pharmacy of the Quarter
This quarter we are highlighting an independent pharmacy from Opelousas, Louisiana, who has utilized EQUIPP services and shown us just how quickly a pharmacy is able to boost their overall Star Rating from a 3, all the way to a 5 Star Rating in just a matter of months! We had the pleasure of speaking with Germaine from Germ’s Thrift Clinic Pharmacy, as she shares her thoughts on EQUIPP services.
Pharmacy First:
First and foremost, what made you want to obtain EQUIPP originally?
Germaine:
I previously had a supervisor who assisted me with OutcomesMTM’s at first. After this, they advised me to reach out to my PSAO at the time and log in to EQUIPP to identify outliers. It was not until I switched PSAO’s to Pharmacy First that I gained the knowledge to use the dashboard properly.
Pharmacy First:
How did you begin to incorporate EQUIPP into your daily workflow?
Germaine:
Unfortunately, it did take me a couple of years to realize that I needed to focus on more than just outliers. Once I turned my focus to the Analyze Performance tab, things started falling into place. We started to run reports weekly for each insurance that appeared in the Analyze Performance tabs, from there we can see exactly which patients would affect our scores. This helped us save time, so we weren’t dealing with just individuals who affect our scores.
Pharmacy First:
What sort of value has EQUIPP brought to your business?
Germaine:
EQUIPP has helped my knowledge tremendously. Not just the platform itself, but its team members are always willing to help if you have questions. Remember, people are available, it is not just a platform to visit. EQUIPP has also helped me to remain on the lower percentage of what is recouped by PBM’s.
Pharmacy First:
What other programs or services helped your pharmacy to improve so rapidly, and how did they do so?
Germaine:
I have been using Medicine-On-Time for adherence packaging for the patients who show up as outliers. Their team has gone out of their way to help me with my scores. My patients do not fall through any cracks!
Thank you for taking the initiative to find out what has made this pharmacy successful in such a short amount of time. If you would like to sign up for EQuIPP® services, have further questions about the program, or simply just need help managing the program for your business, please reach out to our pharmacist on staff: programs@pharmacyfirst.com
