Title: Pharmacist Intervention To Optimize Guideline-Directed Medication Therapy (GDMT) In Patients With Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction (HFrEF) Purpose: The objective of this study is to showcase the benefits of pharmacist involvement in reference to HFrEF patients and support the addition of a heart failure pharmacist practicing under a collaborative practice agreement (CPA). Methods: The study was a retrospective chart review with the primary endpoints assessing patient GDMT and readmission. Secondary endpoints will include an assessment of how quickly an 80% cut-off of GDMT score can be reached and time used for providers. These will be assessed over a 6-month period and may be compared depending on the endpoint. Inclusion and exclusion criteria will mirror previous reviews done at our institution. The GDMT scoring system was determined to assess GDMT utilization and was agreed upon by authors prior to implementation. Appropriate statistical assessments were conducted to the data. Results: Demographics were comparable between both arms of the review. The transition of care (TOC) group included 41 patients versus the general population (control) group’s 49 patients. Baseline scores were comparable (3.85±2.23 vs 3.96±2.12; p=0.819). At 6 months, the TOC arm had higher GDMT scores (4.93±2.34 vs 3.94±2.25; p=0.031) and a greater change in scores (1.07±2.34 vs -0.02±1.70; p=0.015). During the observational period, readmission favored the TOC group (24.4% vs 40.8%; p=0.100) and provider office time used was comparable (126.95±66.19 vs 137.14±60.94 minutes; p=0.449). Achievement of ≥80% GDMT score occurred in 2 patients in the TOC group and 1 patient in the control group. Conclusions: Pharmacist intervention via TOC had a positive impact on HFrEF patients. Future studies should increase the number of charts reviewed and use a more validated scoring system. Repeating this study would improve case numbers and comparing cohorts may show progression in care practices. Additionally, a comparison between TOC encounters and patients managed by a pharmacist under a CPA may help distinguish pharmacist led care to another degree.
