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Background:
A 70-year old male injured his lower back during the course of his employment. In the years following the injury, the injured party’s lower back pain continued and he began to experience joint pain and neuropathic pain in his lower extremities. Aside from the injury related pain, he also developed edema, shortness of breath, cough, and ear pain in the time since his injury. The patient states he requires brand name Lortab due to experiencing GI upset with the generic.
Intervention:
An Intervention Rx™ (a comprehensive review of the claimant’s medical records and prescription history) was completed by the clinical pharmacist, revealing a number of issues relating to the injured party’s chronic pain management. The dosing frequency of one of the patient’s medications was inappropriate and was leading to higher incurred costs. Additionally, the patient’s use of a brand name product over the generic alternative was also incurring unnecessary costs. The pharmacist recommended to optimize the dosing strategies of the patient’s medications, as well as to transition to generic equivalents of current medications.
Results:
The results of the Intervention Rx and peer to peer discussion indicated the treating physician would make changes to the injured worker’s medications. By transitioning from dosing three times daily to dosing twice daily with a higher strength of medication as recommended, the patient continued to have good pain relief at a reduced cost. The physician also agreed to a trial of generic alternatives.
Actual Savings:
The resulting savings per year (AWP) based on the outcome of the Intervention Rx is approximately $1,013.
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