Searching for Solutions
The AAPP Foundation's Collegiate Chapter Impact Grant Program is designed to support AAPP collegiate chapters at schools of pharmacy across the nation. This is a great opportunity for chapters to receive funding for their projects and activities. The application portal is OPEN and submissions are due Sept. 30, 2025.
Advocating for the Evidence: Antidepressants for Youth with Depression
AAPP supports access to antidepressants for youth with moderate to severe symptoms of a depressive, anxiety, or obsessive-compulsive-based disorder and reconsideration of the boxed warning on new-onset suicidal thoughts/behaviors given its many unintended consequences and role in accelerating stigma. Psychiatric pharmacists are encouraged to use this policy brief to support your own advocacy for this gold-standard treatment.
CMS Provides Update on Telehealth Claims
To address provider cash-flow issues resulting from the expiration of Medicare telehealth flexibilities on Oct. 1, CMS announced Nov. 6 that they will return affected claims submitted on or before Nov. 10 and enable providers to resubmit them with expanded coding that clearly demonstrates eligibility under current law. CMS has been processing claims where eligibility is clear (e.g., behavioral/mental health or specified HCPCS codes), but systems limitations have prevented identification of all payable claims, including some ACO services and behavioral health claims without specific diagnosis codes. To address this, CMS will return held telehealth claims submitted on or before November 10, 2025, for dates of service on or after October 1, 2025. Providers can resubmit these claims following statutory requirements. Providers are directed to updated instructions on the CMS website for resubmission guidance.
Over the years, numerous classes of medications have been studied for the management of major depressive disorder, from MAOIs and TCAs to SSRIs, SNRIs, mirtazapine, bupropion, and atypical antipsychotics, among many others. The following questions aim to guide in how to manage MDD when considering the many available agents for treatment.
Children and adolescents are not “miniature adults”. The safe and effective use of pharmacotherapy in pediatric populations requires attention to developmental changes, as well as an appreciation for the differential presentation of mental illnesses relative to adults.
For years, lithium and the antiepileptics were the mainstay for treatment of bipolar disorder. In recent years, numerous antipsychotics have also been utilized. The following questions look to evaluate treatments for bipolar disorder as well as help to best manage specific patient populations within bipolar disorder.
Antipsychotic dose equivalents may be utilized when switching between antipsychotics or when comparing different medications. Multiple methods are used to calculate antipsychotic dose equivalences, each with their own strengths and limitations. Variation in receptor binding profiles of newer agents, changes to methodology in clinical trials over the decades, and lack of dose response data for older agents means no one method will apply to all available agents.
Unique Clinical Pearl sessions are held throughout the AAPP Annual Meeting. Slide sets for these sessions are made available through the AAPP Communities.
Student Committee Blog Takeover
The Student Committee serves aspiring psychiatric pharmacists by providing educational content and programming, overseeing collegiate chapters, and encouraging AAPP members to include students in their professional practices. We encourage you to peruse the committee’s annual blog posts, which showcase students, student chapters, and our role as psychiatric pharmacists in preparing students for their pharmacy careers. The future of psychiatric pharmacy looks bright!
Due to the potential for concomitant psychiatric illness and substance use, understanding the potential interactions between prescription medications and illicit substances is important.
Numerous pharmacologic regimens have been trialed for management of substance use disorders, often with concomitant behavioral interventions. Essential Questions and References What is the evidence for combination of pharmacotherapy and behavioral interventions for managing symptoms of alcohol use disorder? COMBINE
Antipsychotics are used in the management of schizophrenia and other psychiatric disorders. Several major trials have been conducted examining the use of antipsychotics in treatment of schizophrenia, including examining effectiveness, side effect profile, and pharmacoeconomic differences. These major trials help guide the treatment of individuals with psychosis.
Foundation Annual Campaign Post #5 - $75,000 Goal!
In the past year, the AAPP Foundation has awarded over $70,000 in grant funding and project support.
These funds have supported initiatives that expand practice, build evidence, and improve psychiatric pharmacy services.
Join us in sustaining this critical work.
#AAPPFoundation #AdvancingPsychPharmacy
BCPP Exam Prep: Developing Effective Test-Taking Skills
This 2-hour webinar focuses on developing appropriate techniques for answering standardized questions more accurately, identifying common issues in testing that may be hurting your performance, and analyzing your testing performance to improve accuracy, pacing, and endurance. Level up your test-taking skills!
