National Health Insurance Corporation Implements Multi-Drug Management Project in Collaboration with Doctors and Pharmacists

National Health Insurance Corporation Launches Innovative Multi-Drug Management Project

The National Health Insurance Corporation, under the leadership of Chairman Hyun Jae-ryong, has initiated a groundbreaking multi-drug management endeavor in Dobong-gu, Seoul. This project aims to promote the safe usage of medications among local residents through the collaborative efforts of doctors and pharmacists.

Enhancing Patient Care through the Multi-Drug Management Project

The multi-drug management project, which was initiated back in 2018, focuses on providing comprehensive drug management services to individuals with chronic diseases who consume more than 10 types of medications. The primary objective is to prevent drug overlap and minimize the occurrence of side effects.

To achieve this, the project engages pharmaceutical specialists who act as consultants. These experts are entrusted by the NHIS to visit patients’ homes and conduct thorough assessments of their medication regimens. By reviewing the prescription status, identifying potential side effects and drug duplications, and offering counseling and education, the consultant pharmacists play a vital role in optimizing medication use. They also collaborate with doctors to make necessary prescription adjustments based on the assessment results. This collaborative approach also extends to hospital settings, where a multidisciplinary team, comprising doctors and pharmacists, ensures effective drug management for both inpatients and outpatients.

Positive Outcomes and Room for Improvement

An evaluation of the multi-drug management program reveals promising results. Individuals who received drug management services in the community demonstrated a notable 56.3% improvement in medication compliance. Additionally, the number of patients experiencing repeated drug intake witnessed a significant decrease of 40.2%. Furthermore, the project’s implementation in hospitals yielded a 47% reduction in emergency room visits and an 18% decrease in readmission rates, highlighting its effectiveness in improving patient outcomes and reducing healthcare costs.

While the project has received overall positive feedback, some members of the local community have raised concerns regarding the limited integration of pharmacists’ drug counseling findings when adjusting prescriptions. These feedbacks prompted the NHIS to take further steps to enhance the collaboration between doctors and pharmacists.

Strengthening Collaboration through a Regional Advisory Body

In addressing such concerns, the National Health Insurance Corporation has established a regional advisory body, consisting of the Dobong-gu Medical Association, the Association of Pharmacists, and experts in the field. Through three dedicated discussions held since April, the corporation has developed a collaboration model that facilitates effective communication and cooperation between doctors and pharmacists. This model includes the selection of participating doctors and pharmacists, the provision of services plans, and the seamless sharing of information.

Future Implementation and Evaluation of the Collaboration Model

The regional medicine-pharmacist collaboration model is set to be implemented by December 2023, with a focus on clinics and consultations involving pharmacists participating in the primary care chronic disease management pilot project in Dobong-gu. The project’s effectiveness will be evaluated, and any identified shortcomings will be addressed to refine and expand the application of the model to other regions.

Kim Seong-wook, Chairman of the Dobong-gu Medical Association, believes that this collaborative model marks a significant turning point in multi-drug management. The improved communication and cooperation between medical doctors and pharmacists are anticipated to revolutionize the care provided to patients requiring multiple medications.

Ahn Hwa-young, the head of the Korean Pharmaceutical Association’s Community Pharmacy Business Headquarters, also expressed optimism, describing the Dobong-gu multi-drug management project as a pioneering model for collaboration between doctors and pharmacists in the community healthcare system.

Park Ji-young, head of the Corporation’s Chronic Disease Control Office, acknowledged the existing limitations in the community’s information exchange, where pharmacists’ consultation findings are not fully integrated into doctors’ prescriptions. However, she expressed optimism that the National Health Insurance Corporation will make diligent efforts to further refine and expand the collaboration model, including upgrading the information system and broadening the scope of relevant fields.

The National Health Insurance Corporation (Chairman Hyun Jae-ryong) announced that it has started a multi-drug management project in Dobong-gu, Seoul on the 26th, where doctors and pharmacists work together to help local residents use drugs safely.

The ‘multi-drug management project’, which has been underway since 2018, is a business where pharmaceutical specialists provide drug management services to prevent drug overlap and side effects for patients with chronic diseases who take more than 10 types of drugs.

In the local community, a consultant pharmacist commissioned by NHIS visits the patient’s home, comprehensively reviews the medication status, side effects, and duplication of all medications, including general medications, and counsels, educates, and prescribes based on the results. Medication management is achieved through the implementation of adjustment guidelines, and in hospitals, a multidisciplinary team including doctors and pharmacists provides drug management services for both inpatients and outpatients.

As a result of evaluating the effectiveness of the multi-drug management program, a 56.3% improvement in medication compliance was seen in people who received drug management in the community, and the number of patients who took drugs repeatedly decreased with a similar effectiveness of 40.2%. In addition, the multi-drug management project provided by the hospital confirmed the effect of reducing the risk of emergency room visits by 47% and the risk of readmission by 18%. However, an opinion was expressed in the local community that the multidisciplinary collaboration system, where the results of drug counseling by pharmacists are reflected even when adjusting prescriptions by doctors, was insufficient.

In order to improve these problems, the corporation formed a regional advisory body consisting of the Dobong-gu Medical Association, the Association of Pharmacists, and experts, and developed a cooperation model between doctors and pharmacists through discussions held three times from last April, selecting doctors and pharmacists participating in the project, and providing services Plans were prepared for applying on site, such as recruiting recipients and sharing information.

The main point is that the drug control object selected by the doctor or NHIS receives a drug check from a consultant pharmacist (accompanied by a doctor if necessary), and the results are transmitted to the target’s regular hospital doctor through the NHIS information system so that they can be reflected in the entire prescription.

The regional medicine-pharmacist collaboration model will be implemented by December 2023, focusing on clinics and consultation with pharmacists participating in the primary care chronic disease management pilot project in Dobong-gu. After that, the effectiveness of the project will be evaluated, and deficiencies will be supplemented, and the application will be expanded to other regions.

Chairman of Dobong-gu Medical Association, Kim Seong-wook, said, “This cooperation model is considered the starting point of a major change in the multi-drug management business, and communication between medical doctors and pharmacists is expected to open up a horizon new to the management of multi-drug patients.”

Ahn Hwa-young, head of the Korean Pharmaceutical Association’s Community Pharmacy Business Headquarters, said, “The multi-drug management project for Dobong-gu will be the first cooperation model between doctors and pharmacists in the community healthcare system. I hope to establish a communication system between doctors and pharmacists that can solve the problem.”

Park Ji-young, head of the Corporation’s Chronic Disease Control Office, said, “In the community, there is a limitation as the information of pharmacists’ consultation results is not reflected in the doctor’s prescription. We expect this to happen, and the corporation will do its best to successfully settle and spread the cooperation model, such as upgrading the information system and expanding the relevant field.”

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