Pharmacists play a signi­ficant role in the optimisation of medicine use across healthcare settings, and should be considered integral participants in multidisciplinary collaboration

Learning objectives  

After reading this article, pharmacists should be able to:

  • Describe the benefits of including a pharmacist in collaborative healthcare.
  • Discuss the features of and barriers to effective collaborative healthcare.
  • Promote medication management and specialised pharmacist services to other members of the healthcare team.

Competencies (2016) addressed: 1.1.1, 1.1.2, 1.1.3, 1.1.4, 1.1.5, 1.3.2, 1.3.4, 1.4.1, 1.6.1, 2.1.1, 2.2.1, 2.2.2, 2.2.3, 3.2.6, 3.3.3, 3.5.1, 3.5.1, 3.5.2, 4.3.1, 4.7.2, 4.7.4.
Competencies (2010) addressed: 1.1.2, 1.1.4, 1.2.1, 1.2.2, 1.3.2, 1.4.1, 2.3.1, 2.3.2, 3.1.2, 3.1.3, 3.4.1, 3.4.3, 4.1.2, 4.2.3, 6.1.2, 6.1.3, 7.1.3, 7.2.1, 7.2.3, 7.3.1.

Case scenario

Florence is an 84-year-old woman who lives at home alone and receives in-home care to assist with activities of daily living. Her medical conditions are hypertension and rheumatoid arthritis. On a Friday evening, Florence began to feel unwell with symptoms of urinary frequency, dysuria and urge incontinence. A home-visiting doctor diagnosed a urinary tract infection (UTI), and prescribed trimethoprim 300 mg at night for 3 nights. On Sunday, Florence’s condition deteriorated, and she was found by her care worker to be confused and nauseated. Florence was subsequently admitted to hospital. What interprofessional collaboration can occur to improve Florence’s health outcome?

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