Self-assessment tool for screening patients at risk for drug therapy problems

Objective: To describe the development, use, and evaluation of a patient self-assessment tool for screening patients at risk for drug therapy problems (DTPs) and potentially interested in receiving a personal consultation with a pharmacist. Design: Quasiexperimental, nonrandomized, controlled study. Setting: Area Agency on Aging-affiliated senior centers in Florida from April 2005 to December 2005. Participants: 175 clients of an Area Agency on Aging. Intervention: While attending a free seminar on obtaining the best value from their medications, participants completed a 12-item self-assessment tool. The tool was designed to (1) identify participants who were at risk for a DTP and (2) motivate those at risk to participate in a personal pharmacotherapy consultation with a pharmacist on a fee-for-service basis. Main outcome measure: Relationship between total score on self-assessment tool and patient acceptance of offer of personal pharmacotherapy consultation. Results: Of 175 participants who attended a free seminar, 69 (39.4%) accepted the offer of a personal pharmacotherapy consultation. The median score on the self-assessment tool in these participants was significantly higher compared with participants who declined a consultation (3 vs. 1, P = 0.0489). The number of DTPs eventually identified during the personal pharmacotherapy consultation was significantly and positively correlated with the total score on the self-assessment tool (rho = 0.3259, P = 0.0110). Conclusion: The self-assessment tool appeared to be of use in predicting individuals who were likely to accept the offer of a personal consultation. Higher scores on the self-assessment tool may also predict patients who are likely to have a higher number of DTPs.