AAPP’s most recent strategic plan is chock full of goals surrounding the expansion of opportunities for psychiatric pharmacists. An aggressive and big assignment for sure, with no one solution that achieves the goal of growing awareness and inclusion of psychiatric pharmacists into treatment teams and health systems.
After significant brainstorming and research, a plan emerged (see figure) in late 2021 that involved numerous committees and task forces conducting complimentary work simultaneously to achieve the end goal of increasing demand for psychiatric pharmacists.
The Employer Resource Center (ERC) Task Force was formed and charged with generating resources focused on increasing demand by providing guidance for individuals and organizations to use when creating employment opportunities for psychiatric pharmacists.
Early in its work, the ERC Task Force focused on the ABC’s of Practice Expansion:
Using this framework, numerous documents have been developed to help support pharmacists, employers, and institutional leadership in developing new employment opportunities for psychiatric pharmacists across a variety of practice settings. Check out the Employer Resource Center and, in particular, several valuable new resources that have just launched.
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Psychiatric Pharmacists Address Care Gaps on Mental Health Treatment Teams This toolkit addresses how psychiatric pharmacists are different from other important members of the mental health treatment team. It explores how BCPPs and the value they bring are distinctive. This toolkit addresses how BCPPs are distinguished by education and training, how BCPPs can be fully integrated into the team, how reimbursement challenges can be addressed, and clarification of the psychiatric pharmacist role in team based care. |
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Calculating a Return on Investment (ROI) Despite positive outcomes demonstrated by psychiatric pharmacists when integrated into healthcare teams, the financial investment required to integrate such services may be a barrier. The ability to demonstrate a return on investment (ROI) over a short period of time is imperative when persuading leadership to support a new clinical position. While metrics of potential revenue or cost savings will vary based on setting and specific institutions, this ROI calculator provides a framework for justifying new positions and tracking financial benefits over time. |
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To establish new psychiatric pharmacist services, it should be recognized that substantial operational changes for the organization and staff are being proposed. To develop the required vision and an action plan, a needs assessment is necessary to identify opportunities for psychiatric pharmacist services within the practice setting being evaluated. Learn more about that process through this toolkit. |
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The 2014 Excellence in Mental Health Care Act introduced the Certified Community Behavioral Health Center (CCBHC) model. It established a federal definition and criteria for CCBHCs as well as payment model. CCBHCs operate in 46 states with over 500 clinics and grantees (as of November 2023), and CCBHCs are a permanent part of Medicaid (as of March 2024). This toolkit advises on how psychiatric pharmacists can help address key requirements including treatment planning, care coordination, monitoring, and quality. |
AAPP encourages you to share the ERC broadly and to use its tools in growing the number and utilization of psychiatric pharmacists in your health system. We would love to hear from you related to your use of the tools and any tools you might recommend.
