This research and a portion of Snyder's salary were supported by grant number K08HS022119 from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Snyder reports consulting fees from Westat for an evaluation of the CMS Enhanced MTM program. The other authors have nothing to disclose. Portions of this research have been presented as abstracts at the following conferences: (a) 2017 Academy Health Annual Research Meeting; June 25-27, 2017; New Orleans, LA; (b) 2015 American Society of Health-System Pharmacists Clinical Midyear Meeting; December 4-8, 2015; New Orleans, LA; and

Background Studies have identified the positive impact of community pharmacist patient care services. Identifying the most effective implementation strategies and performing robust research are critical to sustaining evidence‐based patient care in this setting. This systematic review aimed to describe: (1) implementation strategies, and (2) dissemination and implementation (D&I) outcomes used to evaluate the implementation of patient care services in community pharmacies. Methods PubMed/MEDLINE, EMBASE, and International Pharmaceutical Abstracts were searched for articles that were: (1) written in English and published in 1985 or later, (2) described a peer‐reviewed empirical study or practice experience implementing a patient care service in a community pharmacy, and (3) described the strategies used to implement and/or evaluate the implementation of the service. Two investigators reviewed the abstract, and full‐text when necessary, of each article to assess eligibility. Data were extracted from each article by two investigators using a standardized form. Implementation strategies were categorized using the Expert Recommendations for Implementation Change (ERIC) study terminology. The D&I outcomes were classified using the Proctor and colleagues terminology. All data were summarized using descriptive statistics. Results Two hundred and thirty‐seven articles were included, 223 of which described at least one implementation strategy and 224 described at least one D&I outcome. “Train and educate stakeholders” and “engage consumer” were the most common and “provide interactive assistance” and “adapt and tailor to context” were the least commonly reported implementation strategies. Reach, acceptability, and adoption were the most common and fidelity and sustainability were the least commonly evaluated D&I outcomes. Most studies used quasi‐experimental or observational designs. Conclusions This systematic review used published manuscripts to identify the breadth and depth of implementation and evaluation strategies being utilized in various community pharmacies. Findings suggest opportunities for further research and innovation via collaboration between pharmacists and implementation practitioners and researchers.

Purpose To measure the effect of a pharmacist-initiated transitions of care (TOC) program on rates of 30-day all-cause readmissions and primary care follow-up. Methods A retrospective cohort study was conducted to evaluate a pharmacist-initiated TOC program for patients discharged from hospitals of a large health system from September 2015 through July 2016. Discharged patients of 13 primary care physicians (the intervention cohort) received TOC program services, and discharged patients seen by 12 other primary care physicians (the control cohort) received usual care. Patients in both cohorts were followed for 90 days. The primary outcome was 30-day all-cause readmissions, and secondary outcomes were 14-day primary care visits, TOC pharmacist identification and resolution of medication therapy problems (MTPs), and transition care management (TCM) billing. Multivariable modeling was performed to test the associations of patient receipt of TOC services with 30-day readmissions and 14-day primary care visits, with controlling for patient demographics and baseline healthcare utilization. Results A total of 492 patients received the TOC intervention, and 379 were followed in the usual care cohort. Among intervention patients, 960 MTPs were identified, and 85.7% of identified MTPs were resolved. Moreover, 9% of intervention cohort patients were readmitted within 30 days, compared to 15% of control cohort patients, and this effect was significant in the multivariable model (odds ratio, 1.82; 95% confidence interval, 1.15-2.89; P = 0.0108). Rates of primary care visits did not differ significantly between the groups; 65% of intervention group visits were billed using TCM codes. Conclusion A pharmacist-initiated TOC program was effective in reducing 30-day all-cause readmissions.

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