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Pharmacists are taking on increasing responsibility as members of patient-care teams, and WISHIN can help ensure that all team members have access to the same clinical information.
Wisconsin pharmacists are now recognized in state statutes as non-physician providers for Medicaid recipients under 2021 Wisconsin Act 98, signed by Gov. Evers.
Kari Trapskin, Pharm.D., Vice President of Health Care Quality Initiatives at the Pharmacy Society of Wisconsin (PSW) says “(Act 98) provides more access to patients for services that otherwise might not be able to be provided.”
As pharmacists play a larger role in health care delivery, their access to information about a patient’s medical history becomes increasingly critical. Trapskin says, “More access to information would be helpful for everybody.”
“Informing clinical decision-making and enabling efficient care coordination is what WISHIN is all about,” says WISHIN CEO Joe Kachelski. “WISHIN is ideally suited to help pharmacists address the challenge of accessing important clinical history, including hospital discharge prescriptions, prescriptions filled at other pharmacies, and lab results used for monitoring medication therapies as they carry out their responsibilities.”
Trapskin says many of PSW’s 4,400 members have records that may not be found in the hospital or system EHR. She says PSW’s vision is to help pharmacists to collaborate and participate with patient-care teams to improve medication use, adherence, and the health of Wisconsin residents. Trapskin says, “Patients can’t always recall clinical details that could be critical to the care that physicians and pharmacists deliver. Pharmacists want to enhance communication with other providers and can be a connection point between the prescriber and what’s currently happening with a mutual patient.” Trapskin says a prescriber may not be aware that a patient is not picking up a prescribed medication because that person can’t get to the pharmacy and doesn’t have access to medication delivery.
Trapskin sees WISHIN as a critical tool to help pharmacists carry out their roles on patient-care teams. She hopes that community pharmacy use of WISHIN will serve as “that connection to (a patient’s) full record.”
