Purpose: Advance care planning (ACP) is a clinical skill that can be taught. An opportunity exists to teach how to conduct ACP to clinicians not typically engaged in these conversations to increase the likelihood that patients and caregivers engage in ACP. We conducted a prospective study exploring the feasibility of a pharmacist-led ACP intervention.
Methods: We completed a prospective, single-center study from July 2015 to July 2017. We included patients of age = 18 years with incurable cancer referred to the palliative care clinic. A trained pharmacist led an ACP discussion with the patient and selected proxy. We defined feasibility as completion of = 30 pharmacist-led ACP discussions over the study period. Additionally, we defined an informed healthcare proxy as someone who understood three key end-of-life (EOL) treatment preferences: the patient's personal definition of quality of life, desired resuscitation status, and preferred location of death (in or out of the hospital). Patients were followed until the end of the study or death. For those patients who died, the pharmacist contacted the proxy for follow-up and explored satisfaction with the ACP intervention.
Results: Thirty-four patients completed the study. All selected proxies completed the intervention and were able to understand the three EOL preferences. At the time of the patient’s death (n = 20), proxies reported that 66.6% received their preferred resuscitation status and 72.2% died in their preferred location. Proxy satisfaction with the ACP process was 7.6 ± 2.5 (mean ± SD) on a 11-point Likert scale.
Conclusion: These findings indicate the potential for pharmacists to lead and engage in ACP in the outpatient setting.
PURPOSE: The purpose of this quality improvement project was to increase pharmacist involvement in the outpatient hospice transition process to improve care of veterans, prevent medication errors, and to ensure medications are provided to the patient via the appropriate pharmacy.
METHODS: This project began with implementation of a pilot process for the pharmacist to complete medication reconciliation for each patient admitted to non-Veterans Affairs (VA) hospice care from the Omaha VA Medical Center. The second step of this project was completion of a retrospective chart review of the interventions made. Statistical analysis was completed via descriptive statistics.
RESULTS: A total of 21 patients were eligible for this study. The mean age was 78 years. The average total number of medications per veteran before and after medication reconciliation for VA meds were 13 and 4 and for non-VA meds were 4 and 6, respectively. The average total cost savings for one fill of all medications changed to non-VA was estimated to be $40.08. The pharmacist noted on average 12.6 medication discrepancies during medication reconciliation per veteran. Just less than half of the clinical recommendations made by the pharmacist were accepted by the providers.
CONCLUSIONS: All veterans admitted to non-VA hospice care had at least one medication discrepancy noted by the pharmacist during medication reconciliation. A majority of the veterans had at least one VA medication changed to non-VA since hospice was now prescribing and providing. The cost savings on average appear to outweigh the time spent on medication reconciliation by the pharmacist.
Objectifs : Les erreurs médicamenteuses sont fréquentes aux points de transitions dans le parcours des patients. L’analyse pharmacothérapeutique et réglementaire du pharmacien sécurise la prise en charge des patients dans l’unité de rétrocession, une zone à risque dans le parcours du patient. L’objectif de ce travail est d’évaluer notre maîtrise des risques iatrogènes et réglementaires au sein de l’unité de rétrocession, par l’identification des interventions pharmaceutiques et des traitements impliqués, en particuliers sur des primo-prescriptions.
Matériel et méthodes : Il s’agit d’une étude prospective monocentrique de 8 mois réalisée dans l’unité de rétrocession d’un centre hospitalier universitaire. Toutes les prescriptions ont été analysées et réparties en 3 catégories : primo-prescription, poursuite de traitement avec nouvelle ordonnance et renouvellement. Les optimisations thérapeutiques et les interventions pharmaceutiques réglementaires effectuées ont été saisies systématiquement.
Résultats : Parmi les 7166 prescriptions analysées, 2,2 % (n=161) ont fait l’objet d’une intervention pharmaceutique. Le taux d’optimisations thérapeutiques et d’interventions pharmaceutiques réglementaires le plus important concerne les primo-prescriptions (9,3 %). Les médicaments les plus impliqués dans les erreurs médicamenteuses sur une primo-prescription sont les anticancéreux (36 %) et les anti-infectieux (24 %). Le taux d’acceptation est de 92 %.
Conclusion : La première dispensation d’un médicament aux rétrocessions est l’étape la plus à risque, notamment sur le plan pharmacothérapeutique. Grâce aux entretiens pharmaceutiques, en cancérologie notamment, ce risque est mieux maîtrisé. Ce travail montre donc l’intérêt de développer des entretiens pharmaceutiques à l’instauration de traitements rétrocédables, quelle que soit la classe thérapeutique.
Background: This paper offers insight into (1) the driving and restraining forces impacting the inclusion of medical assistance in dying (MAID) in health sciences curricula, (2) the required resources for teaching MAID, and (3) the current placement of MAID in health sciences curricula in relation to end-of-life care concepts.
Method: We conducted a qualitative exploratory study in a Canadian province using Interpretive Description, Force Field Analysis, and Change as Three Steps. We interviewed ten key informants (KI), representing the provincial health sciences programs of medicine, nursing, pharmacy, and social work. KIs held various roles, including curriculum coordinator, associate dean, or lecturing faculty. Data were analyzed via the comparative method using NVivo12.
Results: Curriculum delivery structures, resources, faculty comfort and practice context, and uncertainty of the student scope of practice influenced MAID inclusion. Medical and pharmacy students were consistently exposed to MAID, whereas MAID inclusion in nursing and social work was determined by faculty in consideration with the pre-existing course objectives. The theoretical and legal aspects of MAID were more consistently taught than clinical care when faculty did not have a current practice context. Care pathways, accreditation standards, practice experts, peer-reviewed evidence, and local statistics were identified as the required resources to support student learning. MAID was delivered in conjunction with palliative care and ethics, legalities, and professional regulation courses.
Conclusion: The addition of MAID in health sciences curricula is crucial to support students in this new practice context. Identifying the drivers and restrainers influencing the inclusion of MAID in health sciences curricula is critical to support the comprehensiveness of end-of-life education for all students.
Oncology patients frequently use herbal and other forms of complementary medicine, often without the knowledge of oncologists, pharmacists, and other healthcare professionals responsible for their care. Oncology healthcare professionals may lack the knowledge needed to guide their patients on the safe and effective use of herbal medicinal products, a number of which have potentially harmful effects, which include direct toxicity and negative herb-drug interactions. The current review addresses the prevalence and expectations of oncology patients from herbal medicine, as well as evidence for the beneficial or harmful effects of this practice (potential and actual), especially when the herbal products are used in conjunction with anticancer agents. Models of integrative oncology care are described, in which open and effective communication among oncologists, pharmacists, and integrative physicians on the use of herbal medicine by their patients occurs. This collaboration provides patients with a nonjudgmental and multidisciplinary approach to integrative medicine, echoing their own health-belief models of care during conventional cancer treatments. The role of the integrative physician is to facilitate this process, working with oncologists and pharmacists in the fostering of patient-centered palliative care, while ensuring a safe and effective treatment environment. Case scenario: W. is a 56 year old female artist who was recently diagnosed with localized hormone receptor-positive breast cancer. Following lumpectomy and sentinel node dissection, she is scheduled to begin adjuvant chemotherapy with a regimen which will include adriamycin, cyclophosphamide, and paclitaxel (AC-T protocol). She is worried about developing peripheral neuropathy and its impact on her ability to paint, and she asks about a number of dietary supplements which she heard could prevent this from happening: omega-3, vitamin E, alpha-lipoic acid, and acetyl-l-carnithine. She is concerned, however, that the supplements may negatively interact with her chemotherapy regimen.
Globally, the number of older people requiring appropriate and safe management of medicines is growing. This review aimed to identify the roles and responsibilities of pharmacists supporting older people living in a community setting with their palliative care needs and to synthesise key themes emerging from the data, as well as any gaps in knowledge. The literature search included Medline (Ovid), Scopus, and Cinahl (Ebsco) databases. An English language limit was applied. The search included all international articles and any date of publication. Data were synthesised utilizing a systematic text condensation technique and presented according to Theme, Domain, and Meaning Units. Fourteen studies met the inclusion criteria. Selected papers predominantly focused on care provided by the pharmacists supporting people receiving residential aged care services. Clinical review, supply of medicines, and clinical governance were identified as key pharmacist roles. Pharmacists' communication skills, personal behavioural approach, and positive attitude emerged as supportive characteristics for effective person-centered care. Minimal, or no information, were available related to pharmacists located in general medical practices and in Aboriginal health services sector, respectively. The multifaceted role of pharmacists presents an opportunity to provide comprehensive health care for older populations at the end of their life.
Nearly all reports of interprofessional education (IPE) in palliative care have excluded pharmacy students. This article describes an IPE event between pharmacy and nursing students and assesses its impact on IPE competencies. Second-year nursing students and third-year pharmacy students participated in an evening-long event, focused on a married couple who each require palliative care—one for end-of-life planning and one for chronic disease progression. The impact of the event was assessed using the Interprofessional Collaborative Competency Attainment Scale (ICCAS) and qualitative feedback. Two hundred nine (96.7%) completed the ICCAS, and 16 of the 20 statements of the ICCAS showed large positive effect sizes (Cohen d >= 0.8), with the remaining 4 showing moderate positive effect sizes (Cohen d >= 0.5). The greatest effect sizes were related to improved awareness of complementary skillsets and knowledge between the professions. Addressing team conflict and including the patient/family in decision-making showed the least improvement. While ongoing interactions are ideal for the development of skills related to conflict and team development, this article demonstrates that even a 1-time activity can have an impact on students' interprofessional care competence.
BACKGROUND: Worldwide, pharmacy practice is changing to include new roles and responsibilities. Laws enabling the implementation of assisted dying are expanding in international jurisdictions. Pharmacy practice in assisted dying is subsequently expanding. However, studies of how pharmacists experience their practice when engaged in assisted dying are absent. To progress research into the lived experiences of pharmacists practicing in assisted dying, the development of an inquiry framework to guide such research is the first step.
OBJECTIVE: The objective was to develop a theoretical framework of inquiry for use in subsequent continuing research which may explore the actual experience of pharmacy practice in assisted dying.
METHODS: Perspectives were gathered from expert and senior pharmacists who were anticipating the imminent implementation of assisted dying practice. Analysis focused on understanding what aspects of practice experience were important to them. Interview-conversations centred on the question: If you had the chance to talk to experienced pharmacist practitioners who have been involved in the practice of assisted dying, what aspects regarding their experiences, would you like to know about? A conventional approach to qualitative content analysis was utilized to analyze the data.
RESULTS: Findings summarized questions posed by pharmacists contemplating the implementation of assisted dying practice. These perspectives formed the foundation of a theoretical inquiry framework constituted by 8 inter-related dimensional range-continuums. Each range-continuum, designed to explore the lived experiences of pharmacists in practice, is defined. Examples of how the inquiry dimensions will be used to inform future exploratory research are offered within the framework.
CONCLUSIONS: The theoretical inquiry framework will be used to develop knowledge for pharmacists contemplating participation (or not) in assisted dying practice. It is timely to progress research that reveals the informed experiences of pharmacists that are actually practicing in this area. The framework may be adapted for researching pharmacists' experience in other practice areas and contexts.
This study explored the experience of pharmacists, social workers, and nurses who participated in Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) in a tertiary care Canadian hospital. Consenting staff participated in qualitative semistructured interviews, which were then analyzed for thematic content. This article reports on the broad theme of “support” from the perspective of the 3 professions, focusing on the diversity in perceptions of support, how MAiD was discussed within health care teams, feelings of gratuitous or excessive gestures of support, ambivalence over debriefs, and the importance of informal support. While pharmacists and social workers generally felt part of a community that supported MAiD, nurses more often expressed opinions as highly divergent. The key finding across all themes was the central importance of the culture on any unit with respect to MAiD and specifically the role of the unit manager in creating either a positive open space for communication or a more silent or closed space. Nursing noted that in the latter setting many gestures of support were experienced as insincere and counterproductive, as were debriefs. We outline several recommendations for managers based on the study results with the intent of tailoring support for all professionals involved in MAiD.
Objectives: Common terminal phase symptoms include pain, dyspnoea, anxiety, terminal restlessness, nausea and noisy breathing. This study identified the proportion of community pharmacies across two Australian states stocking medicines useful in managing terminal phase symptoms, while exploring factors considered predictive of pharmacies carrying these medicines.
Methods: Community pharmacies from across the states of New South Wales (NSW) and South Australia (SA) were concurrently mailed a survey. Respondents were asked questions relating to medicines stocked, expiry date of stock, awareness of people with palliative care needs and demographic characteristics of the pharmacy. A ‘prepared pharmacy’ was defined as a pharmacy that held medicines useful in the management of terminal phase symptoms.
Results: The proportion of prepared pharmacies across NSW and SA was 21.9%. Multiple logistic regression demonstrated eight predictors of prepared pharmacies, of which awareness of people with palliative needs using their service was the strongest.
Conclusions: One-fifth of community pharmacies carry formulations useful in managing terminal phase symptoms. The main factor associated with this was awareness of people with palliative needs using the pharmacy. Strategies that engage with pharmacists in anticipation of the terminal phase are critical, supporting people with palliative needs to remain at home to die, if desired.
Accompanied suicide is a controversial topic with varying practice across Europe; therefore, there is very little guidance on how healthcare professionals should be educated on accompanied suicide. This study implemented an anonymous, cross-sectional online survey to discover the perceptions of final-year MPharm students on accompanied suicide and the factors affecting one’s views, with the aim of investigating the knowledge, awareness and opinions of pharmacy students regarding accompanied suicide, as well as education to pharmacy students. Surveys were disseminated to final-year pharmacy students at Kingston University between January and March 2019. The survey comprised of three sections: Section A consisting of definitions – to determine knowledge of pharmacy students. Section B including case studies – to understand the opinions of pharmacy students and identify influential patient factors. Section C involving demographics – to discover the influential participant factors. An ethics application was submitted and approved prior to conducting this study. The data yielded a total of 111 responses out of a possible 139 (80% response rate); 77.5% participants were unable to correctly define each term given, with many also agreeing their lack of knowledge affected their views. Overall, most pharmacy students disagreed with accompanied suicide, regardless of the patient factors. Additionally, religious participants were more likely to disagree with the patient request (p < 0.03). Three recommendations were concluded to improve the education of pharmacy students: (1) an approved medical organisation to specifically define terminology, (2) include accompanied suicide in the pharmacy syllabus and (3) include lesser known terminal illnesses on the pharmacy syllabus.
Background: A substantial number of older adults die in residential aged care facilities, yet little is known about the characteristics of and how best to optimise medication use in the last year of life.
Aim: The aim of this review was to map characteristics of medication use in aged care residents during the last year of life in order to examine key concepts related to medication safety and draw implications for further research and service provision.
Design: A scoping review following Arskey and O’Malley’s framework was conducted using a targeted keyword search, followed by assessments of eligibility based on title and content of abstracts and full papers. Following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, the scoping review protocol was prospectively registered to the Open Science Framework on 27 November 2018.
Data Sources: We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, AMED, CINAHL and Cochrane databases to identify peer-reviewed studies published between 1937 and 2018, written in English and looking at medication use in individuals living in aged care facilities within their last year of life.
Results: A total of 30 papers were reviewed. Five key overarching themes were derived from the analysis process: (1) access to medicines at the end of life, (2) categorisation and classes: medicines and populations, (3) polypharmacy and total medication numbers, (4) use of symptomatic versus preventive medications and (5) ‘inappropriate’ medications.
Conclusion: Number of prescriptions or blunt categorisations of medications to assess their appropriateness are unlikely to be sufficient to promote well-being and medication safety for older people in residential aged care in the final stages of life.
Background: The Pontifical Academy for Life (PAV) is an academic institution of the Holy See (Vatican) which aims to develop and promote Catholic teachings on questions of biomedical ethics. Palliative care (PC) experts from around the world professing different faiths were invited by the PAV to develop strategic recommendations for the global development of PC ("PAL-LIFE group").
Design: Thirteen experts in PC advocacy participated in an online Delphi process. In four iterative rounds, participants were asked to identify the most significant stakeholder groups and then propose for each, strategic recommendations to advance PC. Each round incorporated the feedback from previous rounds until consensus was achieved on the most important recommendations. In the last step, the ad hoc group was asked to rank the stakeholders' groups by order of importance on a 13 points-scale and to propose suggestions for implementation. A cluster analysis provided a classification of the stakeholders in different levels of importance for PC development.
Results: Thirteen stakeholder groups and 43 recommendations resulted from the first round and, of those, 13 recommendations were chosen as the most important (one for each stakeholder group). Five groups had higher scores. The recommendation chosen for these top five groups were 1) Policy Makers: Ensure universal access to PC; 2) Academia: Offer mandatory PC courses to undergraduates; 3) Health care workers: PC professionals should receive adequate certification; 4) Hospitals and health care centers: Every healthcare center should ensure access to PC medicines, and 5) PC associations: National Associations should be effective advocates and work with their governments in the process of implementing international policy framework. Not chosen recommendations for both this higher scored group, plus for the remaining eight groups, are also presented in order of importance.
Conclusion: The white paper represents a position statementof the PAV with regards to advocacy and promotion of PC.
OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to investigate Australian pharmacists' views about their role in physician-assisted suicide (PAS), their ethical and legal concerns and overall thoughts about PAS in pharmacy.
DESIGN: Semistructured interviews of pharmacists incorporating a previously validated vignette and thematic analysis.
SETTING: Australia (face to face or phone call).
PARTICIPANTS: 40 Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency registered pharmacists, majority women (65%) with varied experiences in community, hospital, industry, academia, government and other fields.
RESULTS: Emergent themes from the interviews were: legal and logistical framework, ethical framework, training and guidance and healthcare budget. More than half the participants supported the role of pharmacists in the supply of medicines for PAS, while less than half were either against or unsure of the legislation of PAS in Australia. Shared concerns included transparency of prescribing practices and identification of authorised physicians involved in PAS, which were consistent with existing literature. Religious faith, emotion and professional autonomy were key indicators for the implementation of conscientious objection to the supply of medicines in PAS. Re-evaluation of current guidelines, pharmacist training and government reimbursement was also of significance from participants' perspectives.
CONCLUSION: This study revealed current concerns of practising pharmacists in Australia, including previously undocumented perspectives on the pharmacoeconomic impact of and barriers relating to PAS. The need for training of all healthcare professionals involved, the provision of clear guidelines, including regulation around storage, administration and disposal of medicines dispensed for PAS and the updating of current therapeutic guidelines around end-of-life care were all issues delineated by this study. These findings highlighted the need for current and future policies to account for all stakeholders involved in PAS, not solely prescribers.
Background: Black cancer patients experience pain. Barriers to opioid medications for pain may include geographic factors. This study examines neighborhood factors associated with difficulties receiving prescription opioids from pharmacies for black cancer patients.
Design: A secondary data analysis of a study on opioid adherence was used to examine neighborhood-level and individual factors related to difficulties filling prescriptions for opioids.
Setting/Subjects: Patients being treated for cancer pain with opioids (n = 104) were recruited. All self-identified as black, were 21 years or older, had cancer diagnoses, and had been prescribed extended release opioids.
Measurements: A seven-item survey to identify problems filling opioids was completed by 98 participants along with a nine-item scale to assess perceived neighborhood characteristics. Scales of neighborhood amenities and neglect were created from the perceived neighborhood characteristics scale using principal components analysis. The 2009–2013 American Community Survey data were used to estimate the census tract percentage of non-Hispanic black residents, residents =25 years of age without a high school degree or equivalent, and households earning below the federal poverty level within the past 12 months.
Results: Nearly 51% reported problems getting their opioids filled: 28% had to wait days and 24% had to return to the pharmacy multiple times. The main theme identified in analysis of an open-ended question was pharmacies not stocking medication. Neighborhood locations that rated higher on the amenities scale were protective for pharmacies sufficiently stocking opioids.
Conclusions: Additional research on pharmacies sufficiently stocking opioid pain and neighborhood perceptions is warranted.
OBJECTIVES: Patients who are no longer eligible for curative treatment often suffer from multiple complaints and require a multidisciplinary treatment approach. We incorporated two pharmacists in the palliative team, one hospital pharmacist and one pharmacist who were trained as a community pharmacist. The objective of our study was to evaluate their contribution to the palliative team.
METHODS: During 13 months, the two pharmacists participated in all regular patient reviews and rounds and were available for individual consultation by all members of the palliative team on a daily basis. Each intervention (consults at request or during the patient rounds) was logged and categorised.
KEY FINDINGS: During the study period, 115 patients were under the care of the palliative treatment team. The pharmacists were actively involved in 107 of these (93%). Pharmacists interventions occurred in 76% of patients, with an average of 1.5 interventions per patient. The most common intervention types were giving general therapeutic advice, starting of a drug for an uncontrolled symptom and stopping a drug that was given as prophylaxis. When comparing the contribution of the hospital pharmacist and the outpatient pharmacist, their interventions overlapped with regard to starting drugs, choice of drugs and side-effect management. However, interventions on parenteral drugs or optimising the route of administration mostly came from the hospital pharmacist, whereas the outpatient pharmacist more often intervened in increasing adherence and stopping drugs.
CONCLUSION: The palliative pharmacist team adds expertise to the palliative treatment team, with an active contribution in 76% of patients.
Objectives: To explore pharmacists’ perspectives on practice, availability, and barriers related to opioids.
Methods: This cross-sectional study evaluated pharmacists’ perspectives on practice, availability, and barriers related to opioids. Electronic surveys were distributed to pharmacists practicing in Georgia via Survey Monkey. The 2 or Fisher Exact test was used to test differences in practice, availability, and barriers with respect to type of pharmacy and location of pharmacy.
Results: Most participating pharmacists practiced in an independent (47%) or community chain pharmacies (37%). The majority checked the Prescription Drug-Monitoring Program (PDMP) on a regular basis (73%), and about a third reported contacting the prescriber prior to dispensing. The most common barrier included concerns about diversion (82%) and illicit use (90%). About two-thirds reported experiencing a shortage of opioids. Significant differences (P < .05) were found between types of pharmacy in dispensing practices, availability, and barriers. No significant differences were found with respect to pharmacy location.
Conclusion: Findings suggest that pharmacists are facing challenges in availability of opioids and are employing stewardship approaches to optimize dispensing practices. This research provides insight regarding broken links in the “pain relief chain” and identifies opportunities to improve the accessibility of opioids when medically indicated. Pharmacists can play an important role in addressing the opioid crisis as well as providing quality care to patients with cancer seeking pain relief.
In clinical practice, pharmacists are continually required to improve their knowledge and expertise; however, the postgraduate education system for professional development cannot be confidently stated to be well established. The establishment of a systematic and multifaceted educational curriculum should be useful to improve home care and pharmacists' contribution; therefore, we developed a curriculum in collaboration with the university faculty of pharmaceutical sciences, department of pharmacy in hospital, and the Fukuoka Pharmaceutical Association. Class topics were extracted from the "Kanwa-Iryou-Yakugaku", edited by the Japanese Society for Pharmaceutical Palliative Care and Sciences. The items are necessary to perform palliative care as a pharmacist. A class schedule of 6 days (24 classes in total) was formulated. Questionnaires on comprehension degree before and after each class were provided to the participants. Comprehension was assessed on a scale of 1 to 10, where "I do not understand at all" was 1 and "I understand enough" was 10. The average recovery rates of questionnaires from each class were 92.6 % and 88.9 % before and after class, respectively. The average number of participants who completely answered the questionnaire before and after class was 45.6; therefore, these data were analyzed. Comprehension degree on each topic had significantly increased after attendance of all classes (p < 0.01). The comprehension degree of participants of the medical science of palliative care did greatly improve. Consequently, it is clear that the standard education model constructed was meaningful for the professional development of pharmacists in palliative care medicine.
Palliative care services offered in the United States have grown substantially since the year 2000. These types of services have been shown to improve a patient's quality of life when presented with a serious or life-threatening disease or illness. An important characteristic of a quality palliative care service is the presence of an interdisciplinary team to utilize different areas of expertise to address multiple aspects of patient care. An important member of this team is the pharmacist. The services presented in this interprofessional education and practice guide describe pharmacist-delivered palliative care services offered in an institutional ambulatory palliative care setting from 2012 to 2018.
Clinical pharmacy interventions have been shown to improve medication therapy, prevent undesirable side effects, and improve patients' clinical outcomes in a number of settings; however, limited data exist to characterize clinical pharmacy specialist (CPS) providers' interventions in an inpatient hospice Veteran Affairs (VA) setting. The primary objective of this quality improvement (QI) project was to quantify the number and types of pharmacy interventions implemented from the Pharmacists Achieve Results with Medications Documentation (PhARMD) tool for inpatient hospice patient encounters in a VA medical center. A total of 453 interventions during 185 patient care encounters were documented by CPS providers between September 1, 2016, and December 31, 2016. These interventions were documented across 32 unique patients, with an average of 14.2 interventions made per patient during this period. CPS providers frequently intervened to optimize pharmacotherapy for the treatment of pain (42.38%), terminal agitation (5.08%), and nausea (3.97%). Additionally, CPS providers played a significant role in the deprescribing of medication by discontinuing drugs no longer indicated (18.3%). These results substantiate the valuable contribution to patient care that the CPS providers make in optimizing symptom management and deprescribing at end-of-life. Future studies are needed to characterize the potential cost savings of CPS provider services in the inpatient hospice setting.