Community Pharmacists Can Impact Disparities in Care Delivery, Access
The tools that can be used to reduce health disparities exist, but they must be widely disseminated to populations across the US.
In some rural areas of the United States, pharmacists are the only health care providers that a community can access. For these pharmacists, social determinants of health—the nonmedical factors that influence health outcomes—can make care delivery even more challenging, especially diabetes care.
“We know that specifically, underserved communities have health disparities in diabetes,” explained Jasmine Perry, PharmD, CPHQ. Perry is a senior clinical pharmacist, professional engagement and quality at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, sat down with Drug Topics at the 2024 National Association of Chain Drug Stores Total Store Expo, held August 17 to August 19, 2024, in Boston, Massachusetts.
READ MORE: Community Needs Must be Met to Bridge Gaps in Health Care Disparity
The question, though, is how community pharmacists can have an impact. “Of course, you can’t address all disparities through social drivers of health,” Perry said. “But, you can start to have impact.” By taking a step back and starting with a holistic view of a person’s health, “not just the medications or medical components,” said Perry, pharmacists can begin to drive change.
“We have the tools in the toolbox that we need to have an impact,” Perry said. “We have the medication, we have the research, we have the evidence of things that can help improve HbA1c, but access—giving access to communities across the US—to these resources is vitally important.”
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