Depression project for Waikato
The Waikato Community Pharmacy Group has launched a mental health project involving the region’s rural pharmacies, following a funding grant from the Ministry of Health’s Rural Innovation Fund.
The project will enable rural pharmacists to optimise care for patients with mild to moderate depression through medication counselling and treatment monitoring.
This is the first community pharmacy project in the Waikato that has attracted funding directly from the ministry, rather than the local DHB, and may serve as a template for community pharmacy involvement in the ongoing care of chronically ill patients.
Thirty of the 40 rural pharmacies in the region have already gone through the WCPG’s accreditation process and have signed up to deliver the programme which aims to strengthen the role of rural pharmacy in education, support and monitoring of patients initiated on SSRIs.
Antidepressant Counselling and Treatment Monitoring for Patients initiated on SSRIs includes medication counselling, advice on self-help strategies and medication adherence support to optimise the use of antidepressants and improve patient outcomes.
“A number of factors contribute to high rates of non-adherence to antidepressants, such as the potential side effects, delayed onset of action of the antidepressant, poor understanding of the importance of adherence and the patient’s health and spiritual beliefs,” project manager pharmacist Jane Abel says.
“Overseas studies show medication counselling and treatment monitoring by community pharmacists can improve adherence to antidepressant medication in those starting out on treatment.”
Rural pharmacists who are part of the project receive a standardised evidence-based information manual and utilise a checklist of the things they need to cover to improve adherence to treatment, and patient outcomes.
The project is closely aligned with Waikato Primary Health and the Regional Primary Care Mental Health Plan and involves: upskilling pharmacists with the current evidence-based best practice treatments for mild to moderate depression; building linkages between GPs, community pharmacy and mental health services to ensure integration of services; development of resources and tools to support standardised counselling services; a counselling checklist and evidence-based educational resources.
WCPG chief executive Cath Knapton says, although some rural pharmacies were already offering counselling and monitoring treatment of their mental health patients, the delivery was inconsistent and information was not standardised.
To provide the service, pharmacists were required to attend a WCPG training session and answer an assessment based on the project materials. They were also required to have a private consulting room or designated area.
Under the programme, patients who have starting taking antidepressants/anxiolytic medication recently will now be provided information on the benefits of taking the medication and its onset of action and potential side effects.
The need to take the medicine daily will also be reinforced.
The treatment monitoring will involve follow-up sessions to assess progress, adherence and discuss any issues.
The WCPG’s Clinical Advisory Group has provided advice and guidance on the most optimal mode of service delivery, development of resources, data collection, quality initiatives and evaluation. Data collection tools have been developed to help with reporting and evaluation of the project.
Ms Knapton is hoping results from its planned periodic patient satisfaction surveys and final evaluation at the end of the project will help build a case for ongoing funding beyond a year. RK
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