Partners in D News
September 22, 2008
Klotz Presents Partners in D Program at Self-Care Institute
Pharmacy school faculty members from across the United States heard how Western University of Health Sciences College of Pharmacy is teaching its first-year student pharmacists to help underserved seniors get the most out of Medicare Part D. Roger Klotz, RPh, assistant professor of pharmacy practice at Western University, described to attendees of the Self-Care Institute annual meeting, held June 21-22, 2008 in Chicago, Illinois, his school's involvement in the California statewide program, Partners in D.
"As a faculty member involved in the Partners in D program, I was pleased to share our approach to getting our youngest students ready to help seniors benefit from Part D," explained Klotz.
Western University's College of Pharmacy is one of seven California pharmacy schools that have joined together under the banner of Partners in D. Through this research initiative, student pharmacists help seniors and health professionals navigate the Medicare Prescription Drug coverage program, commonly know as Medicare Part D. Students receive intense instruction about Medicare Part D, and share this knowledge with underserved seniors during special outreach events where seniors live and gather. The students help seniors evaluate their Part D options and choose plans that meet their different needs.
"Students involved across the state in the Partners in D program are in their first through fourth years of pharmacy school. Here at Western, we wanted to be sure to introduce this clinical experience to our newest students, to show them they can be effective clinicians early on," said Koltz. "They are doing great work."
"We decided to train our first-year students because the new health environment calls for early training in basic health care financing and we already had a course into which we could weave this subject as it relates to Part D. The opportunity was perfect," he added.
Klotz shared Western University's strategy and successes to date during two sessions of the Self-Care Institute, which is sponsored by the American Pharmacists Association. The Self-Care Institute is designed for faculty from different colleges of pharmacy to present and exchange ideas about educational issues and approaches, particularly related to teaching pharmacy students how to deal with self-care medications and devices.
Klotz explained that Western University's Medicare Part D program lets new students build confidence and rapport with patients after students have gone through Part D training, and it gives students the opportunity to act in a professional advisory role while under the supervision of pharmacy school faculty members. Because Partners in D is a research program, students get early exposure as researchers--interviewing patients and gathering data. "A lot of discussion at the meeting ensured about the program and the details of how we implemented it. The interest and enthusiasm were high," commented Klotz.
Partners in D is a research grant funded by the Amgen Foundation. It was created by faculty members at the University of California, San Francisco School of Pharmacy.
