Reference no: EM133304038

Assignemnt: There have been recent studies done back in February, that show how much of an impact that pharmacists have on patients in the communities around the United States. It is already known that many people struggle with getting access to healthcare for a variety of different reasons. Many of these reasons are due to what are called health disparities. Health disparities are different influences that affect how everyone of us gets access to healthcare and this includes one's education, social environment, living community, financial stability, and general health. In this article there was a study done on an elderly man at the ripe age of 85 that had several chronic health issues. English was not his primary language and he struggled financially throughout his lifetime. Due to these barriers, faced daily, he struggled to get the adequate healthcare he needed. He withheld from taking certain medications because he needed to save money for being able to take the bus and buy groceries for himself. Upon encountering his local pharmacist, the pharmacist was able to communicate with him and learn all the reasons why he was struggling with getting adequate healthcare. The pharmacist learned that his insulin doses were lowered, so that the man would not have to spend as much out of pocket. The pharmacist contacted the man's physician and figured out a plan to get him the medications he needed without having needing to spend anymore than what he was already. Networking was done to the point to the man's health was stabilized and his healthcare was more accessible.

Health disparities and language barriers are huge obstacles that we face in our nation. If a patient is not fully able to communicate with their physician or really anyone in a health setting, it greatly diminishes their experience and lessens autonomy. In this article, there was of course the bilingual pharmacist who was able to communicate with the 85-year-old man and that ended up changing his life for the better. This pharmacist was able to analyze what medications he was taking for different illnesses and assess whether he was getting the proper doses or not. He was then able to network and set the old man up for different programs that would help him with his grocery and medical expenses. I think that physicians and pharmacists should always collaborate with one another to ensure that patients are getting the proper doses of medication. This could either be done through options as a telehealth or the government pairing certain doctors with pharmacists.

The stakeholders involved in this article are of course the physicians, pharmacists, patients, and insurance companies. Insurance companies obviously make their money through the coverage of a lot of different expensive procedures/medications and this change in medical collaboration could impact that greatly. MDs and pharmacists would have to take additional time out of their day to communicate with one another to ensure that their patients are getting properly medicated. Patients would want to pay affordable prices for their prescriptions and medical procedures, so they would have to look for a healthcare team that facilitates these actions.

Question: For your response Article post, describe your opinion of the article/issue posted and incorporate relevant information from the module material. Formal references not
Describe why you do or do not agree with the opinion of others in your group. Provide supporting information (e.g. material from the course) research, or factual rationale.Article Title: How Should Physicians and Pharmacists Collaborate to Motivate Health Equity in Underserved Communities?