Consultant pharmacists say they can help, and now have figures to back up their claim.
Michael D. Dalzell Senior Editor Drug-related illnesses and complications cost the health care system hundreds of billions of dollars each year. They are a red flag for poor quality of care, and perhaps more important, they are often avoidable. That amount includes hospitalizations, lab tests and physician and ancillary services. The upshot is that what is being learned from the study is applicable to other groups of patients, says J. Lyle Bootman, Ph.D., dean and professor at the University of Arizona's College of Pharmacy in Tucson, Ariz., and principal investigator in the first phase of the so-called Fleetwood Project. The results, Bootman asserts, have enormous implications for health plans.