Integrating real-world skills and diabetes lifestyle coach training into a revised health promotion and communications course.

Background And Purpose: Effective communication skills are essential for all pharmacists, regardless of practice setting. An implicit need in pharmacy education is to emphasize direct application of these skills to future healthcare practice prior to experiential rotations. The aim of this article is to describe how we revised a required first professional year (P1) doctor of pharmacy course to achieve two main goals: 1) improve the course relevance by connecting content to real-world skills; and 2) qualify all pharmacy students at our institution as certified National Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) lifestyle coaches upon course completion.

Job satisfaction among board-certified pharmacists in Virginia.

Background: Board certification has been associated with job satisfaction. Identifying factors influencing board-certified pharmacists' job satisfaction can assist employers in recruitment and retention.

Objectives: To identify factors associated with job satisfaction among board-certified pharmacists in Virginia.

Role of lipoprotein(a) in atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease: A review of current and emerging therapies.

Lipoprotein(a), or Lp(a), is structurally like low-density lipoprotein (LDL) but differs in that it contains glycoprotein apolipoprotein(a) [apo(a)]. Due to its prothrombotic and proinflammatory properties, Lp(a) is an independent risk factor for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) and aortic valve stenosis. Lp(a) levels are genetically determined, and it is estimated that 20%-25% of the global population has an Lp(a) level ≥50 mg/dL (or ≥125 nmol/L).

Survey of CDC-recognized community pharmacies providing the National Diabetes Prevention Program and impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on program delivery.

Background: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) established the National Diabetes Prevention Program (NDPP) to prevent type 2 diabetes using an evidence-based lifestyle intervention program provided by community- and health care-based organizations, including community pharmacies.

Objectives: This study aimed to characterize CDC-recognized community pharmacies offering NDPP and determine the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on program delivery.

Methods: A list of CDC-recognized community pharmacies offering NDPP was obtained from the CDC Registry of Recognized Programs on September 19, 2020.

The cost-effectiveness of pharmacist-physician collaborative care models vs usual care on time in target systolic blood pressure range in patients with hypertension: a payer perspective.

Hypertension is highly prevalent in the United States, affecting nearly half of all adults (43%). Studies have shown that pharmacist-physician collaborative care models (PPCCMs) for hypertension management significantly improve blood pressure (BP) control rates and provide consistent control of BP. Time in target range (TTR) for systolic BP is a novel measure of BP control consistency that is independently associated with decreased cardiovascular risk.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure: considerations for pharmacists delivering the National Diabetes Prevention Program.

Prediabetes is highly prevalent in the United States affecting over 88 million adults. In 2010, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) established the National Diabetes Prevention Program (NDPP), an intensive lifestyle program consisting of a 16-lesson curriculum focused on diet, exercise, and behavior modification, with the ultimate goal to reduce progression from prediabetes to diabetes. Despite tens of millions of adults potentially qualifying to participate in the program, the uptake of the NDPP has been exceedingly low.

Combination therapy with once-weekly glucagon like peptide-1 receptor agonists and dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors in type 2 diabetes: a case series.

Background: National treatment guidelines recommend glucagon-like peptide receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) as add-on therapy to oral agents. However, GLP-1 RAs in combination with dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors is not recommended due to a lack of evidence.

Objective: This case series aims to describe the efficacy and safety of once-weekly GLP-1 RAs administered concomitantly with DPP-4 inhibitors in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Oral Semaglutide: A Review of the First Oral Glucagon-Like Peptide 1 Receptor Agonist.

Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) are highly effective at lowering hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) and facilitating weight loss. Four agents in the GLP-1 RA class, albiglutide, liraglutide, dulaglutide, and semaglutide, also have cardioprotective effects. However, subcutaneous administration of these agents remains a major reason for their underutilization.

Recent Updates on the Use of PCSK9 Inhibitors in Patients with Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease.

Purpose Of Review: Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) is caused by elevated levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C). Although statins significantly reduce ASCVD risk, there remains a high degree of residual risk in statin-treated patients. Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) inhibition has emerged as a significant therapeutic target for further lowering of LDL-C when used in combination with statins.

The 2017 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association hypertension guideline and opportunities for community pharmacists.

Objectives: To initiate a call to action for community pharmacists to maximize the opportunities to improve the management of hypertension (HTN) in light of the 2017 American College of Cardiology (ACC)/American Heart Association (AHA) HTN guideline.

Summary: In November 2017, the ACC and the AHA, along with 9 other professional organizations, released a comprehensive guideline on the prevention, detection, evaluation, and management of high blood pressure (BP). Major changes included the reclassification of BP and redefinition of HTN to 130/80 mm Hg or above, significantly increasing the number of individuals with HTN.

Recent Developments in the Role of Coenzyme Q10 for Coronary Heart Disease: a Systematic Review.

Purpose Of Review: This review examines recent randomized clinical trials evaluating the role of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) in the management of coronary heart disease.

Recent Findings: CoQ10 is one of the most commonly used dietary supplements in the USA. Due to its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, CoQ10 has been studied extensively for possible use in managing coronary heart disease.

A Prescription for Prescribing: Ensuring Continued Pharmacist Preparedness.

The scope of practice for pharmacists in the United States increasingly includes elements of prescribing under collaborative practice agreements and statewide protocols. However, as a result of continued health care access concerns, we believe that pharmacists will be called on to serve as independent prescribers in the future. For this anticipated practice expansion to become a successful reality, the assurance of pharmacist preparedness and continuous professional development through profession-wide standards will be imperative.

Pharmacists providing care in the outpatient setting through telemedicine models: a narrative review.

Telemedicine refers to the delivery of clinical services using technology that allows two-way, real time, interactive communication between the patient and the clinician at a distant site. Commonly, telemedicine is used to improve access to general and specialty care for patients in rural areas. This review aims to provide an overview of existing telemedicine models involving the delivery of care by pharmacists via telemedicine (including telemonitoring and video, but excluding follow-up telephone calls) and to highlight the main areas of chronic-disease management where these models have been applied.

Pharmacist-physician collaborative care model and time to goal blood pressure in the uninsured population.

Pharmacist-physician collaborative practice models (PPCPMs) improve blood pressure (BP) control, but their effect on time to goal BP is unknown. This retrospective cohort study evaluated the impact of a PPCPM on time to goal BP compared with usual care using data from existing medical records in uninsured patients with hypertension. The primary outcome was time from the initial visit to the first follow-up visit with a BP <140/90 mm Hg.

Pharmacologic approaches for the management of patients with moderately elevated triglycerides (150-499 mg/dL).

Hypertriglyceridemia, defined as serum triglyceride (TG) levels >150 mg/dL, now affects over one-quarter of the US adult population and is associated with an increased risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Available guidelines for managing hypertriglyceridemia vary with respect to TG thresholds and severity of disease. Lifestyle modifications and management of secondary causes (eg, diabetes) remain the first step in managing hypertriglyceridemia, with pharmacotherapy reserved to reduce the risk of pancreatitis and/or further reduce TG levels.

Effectiveness of a Pharmacist-Physician Team-Based Collaboration to Improve Long-Term Blood Pressure Control at an Inner-City Safety-Net Clinic.

Purpose: To evaluate the effectiveness of a pharmacist-physician collaborative practice model (PPCPM) to improve long-term blood pressure (BP) control rates in a primarily African-American underserved urban population.

Practice Innovation: Volunteer physicians established initial diagnoses, whereas pharmacists provided most (more than 70%) of the medication management. During each scheduled visit, the pharmacist reconciled the medication list, completed a clinical interview, conducted a focused physical examination, developed and implemented a treatment plan, and provided documentation in a shared medical record.

Lomitapide and mipomersen: novel lipid-lowering agents for the management of familial hypercholesterolemia.

Background: Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is an autosomal dominant disorder caused primarily by mutations in the low-density lipoprotein receptor gene. Familial hypercholesterolemia is characterized by exceedingly high levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and subsequent premature coronary heart disease. Homozygous FH (HoFH) is less prevalent, but more severe, than heterozygous FH.

Liraglutide: clinical pharmacology and considerations for therapy.

Liraglutide is a United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) analog that is 97% homologous to native human GLP-1. The additional 16-carbon fatty acid chain causes noncovalent binding to albumin, which slows absorption from the injection site and protects the molecule from degradation by the enzyme dipeptidyl peptidase-4, allowing for protraction of action. Albumin binding and an elimination half-life of 13 hours combine to allow for once-daily dosing.