Association Between an Enhanced Clinical Pharmacy Service and Patient Experience in Hospitalized Adults: A Cohort Study

<b>Purpose.</b> To determine if implementation of an enhanced clinical pharmacy service (ECPS) at a community hospital could improve patient experience as measured by medication-related Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) scores. <b>Methods.</b> A cohort study of 260 patients at a community hospital was conducted. Patients in the intervention group received additional pharmacy services from the standard of care (SOC) group, including daily medication counseling, pharmacist-driven medication administration, discharge medication reconciliation and education, consistent offers to enroll in a bedside medication delivery program (BMDP), and a telephone call following discharge. The primary outcome of patient experience was assessed through patients' responses to a care transitions HCAHPS survey question regarding understanding of the purpose of taking medications following discharge. <b>Results.</b> Among patients in the ECPS cohort, 75.8% had a top-box response to the care transitions HCAHPS question, compared to 63.3% of patients in the SOC cohort (OR = 1.81; 95% CI [0.61-5.37]). Top-box responses increased for all assessed HCAHPS questions but were not statistically significant. The HCAHPS survey response rate was 29.3% in the SOC cohort and 29.9% in the ECPS cohort. <b>Conclusion.</b> Following an ECPS intervention, patient experience as determined by HCAHPS scores increased, but the results did not reach statistical significance. Further, larger studies are needed on this topic.