Improving Access to Home Blood Pressure Monitors at a Federally Qualified Health Center.

Self-monitoring of blood pressure (BP) clinically decreases BP. However, cost can limit access, especially in underserved populations. This mixed-methods pilot study aims to determine the impact of providing home BP monitors free of charge to patients at a federally qualified health center (FQHC) by quantifying the effect on BP and surveying patients to measure satisfaction and engagement.

Perceptions of collaborative care team members on facilitators and barriers to care and glycosylated hemoglobin level as a diabetes quality metric at a federally qualified health center in Texas.

Objectives: Facilitators and barriers to collaborative patient care have been explored in previous studies. Few studies provide information about collaborative care team (CCT) members' roles in treating patients with diabetes and how CCT members should be evaluated for their contributions to diabetes care. To describe the roles and responsibilities of CCT members at CommUnityCare (CUC), a federally qualified health center in Central Texas; identify the facilitators and barriers affecting referrals to other CCT members within CUC; explore the facilitators and barriers to collaborative patient care at CUC; and assess CCT members' perceptions of quality metrics for diabetes care.

Patient experience with clinical pharmacist services in Travis County Federally Qualified Health Centers.

Background: Positive patient experiences with care have been linked to improved health outcomes. Patient experience surveys can provide feedback about the level of patient-centered care provided by clinical pharmacists and information about how to improve services.

Objectives: Study objectives are: 1) To describe patient experience with clinical pharmacist services in a federally qualified health center (FQHC).

Impact of Physician-Pharmacist Covisits at a Primary Care Clinic in Patients With Uncontrolled Diabetes.

Purpose: A popular method for enhancing medication management within a patient-centered medical home (PCMH) is the physician-pharmacist collaborative management (PPCM) model. To improve efficiency of health-care delivery within 4 federally qualified health centers (FQHCs), the PPCM model was implemented through coordinated physician-pharmacist covisits.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of physician-pharmacist covisits on clinical outcomes among patients with uncontrolled diabetes.

Development of a direct observation of procedural skills rubric for fourth-year pharmacy students in ambulatory care rotations.

Purpose: The development and implementation of a pilot program requiring direct observation of procedural skills (DOPS) assessments of fourth-year pharmacy students during ambulatory care rotations are described.

Methods: All fourth-year pharmacy students at the University of Texas at Austin College of Pharmacy who engaged in a required advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) in ambulatory care during the period January-May 2015 participated in a DOPS pilot program. The DOPS process required students to select a patient for a medication-focused "workup," evaluate the selected patient case, present the results to a preceptor, and conduct a preceptor-supervised patient interview.

Impact of a clinical pharmacy program on changes in hemoglobin A1c, diabetes-related hospitalizations, and diabetes-related emergency department visits for patients with diabetes in an underserved population.

Background: Diabetes mellitus is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. With the rise in prevalence of diabetes, there has been an increased need for clinical pharmacy services focused on diabetes management in ambulatory clinics. However, more data IS needed to determine the overall impact that clinical pharmacists have on preventing diabetes-related inpatient admissions and emergency department (ED) visits for patients with diabetes, especially in an underserved population.

Spanish-speaking patients' satisfaction with clinical pharmacists' communication skills and demonstration of cultural sensitivity.

OBJECTIVE To assess Spanish-speaking patients' satisfaction with their clinical pharmacists' communication skills and demonstration of cultural sensitivity, while controlling for patients' sociodemographic, clinical, and communication factors, as well as pharmacist factors, and to identify clinical pharmacists' cultural factors that are important to Spanish-speaking patients. DESIGN Cross-sectional study. SETTING Central Texas during August 2011 to May 2012.