PHarmacist Avoidance or Reductions in Medical Costs in PALLiative Care Inpatient Services: PHARM-PALL

BACKGROUND: Inpatient palliative care (PC) pharmacists have been shown to improve clinical and team outcomes. However, data on financial outcomes are still limited. OBJECTIVES: To quantify the cost avoidance (CA) associated with a full-time inpatient PC pharmacist based on clinical interventions. METHODS: A retrospective review was conducted at two community hospitals for PC pharmacist interventions from January 2024 through June 2024. RESULTS: The PC pharmacist performed 1015 interventions, 698 of which were accepted. The associated total CA was $1,336,717 with an annualized CA of $2.68 million. The average CA was $11,935 per PC pharmacist shift, $1,915 per accepted intervention, and $3,359 per patient (398 patients). The potential monetary CA-to-pharmacist salary ratio was 21:1. CONCLUSIONS: A PC pharmacist may help avoid significant health care costs, particularly in the areas of deprescribing, identifying untreated indications, and using PC expertise to make therapeutic recommendations.