PQA and the Community Pharmacy Foundation Announce Winners of the Inaugural Community Pharmacy Innovation in Quality Awards

For Immediate Release

CONTACT:

Lisa Hines, PharmD

Senior Director, Measure Operations & Analytics

Pharmacy Quality Alliance

lhines@PQAalliance.org

PQA

and the Community Pharmacy Foundation Announce Winners of the Inaugural Community Pharmacy Innovation in Quality Awards

Alexandria, VA (May, 17, 2018) - The Pharmacy Quality Alliance (PQA), a non-profit leader in quality measure development, and the Community Pharmacy Foundation (CPF) today announced the inaugural recipients of the Community Pharmacy Innovation in Quality (CPIQ) Awards during the 2018 PQA Annual Meeting in Baltimore, MD.

The newly established CPIQ awards recognize high performance for a pioneering individual practitioner and an innovative community pharmacy practice that result in improvements in quality of care, medication optimization and patient outcomes.

PQA and CPF are pleased to announce the recipients of the 2018 CPIQ Awards:

Individual category - Kari Trapskin, vice president of Health Care Quality Initiatives at the Pharmacy Society of Wisconsin, has been recognized for her contributions to the Wisconsin Pharmacy Quality Collaborative (WPQC), a quality and service payment initiative. Launched in 2007, the WPQC is a sustainable program providing expanded pharmacy services that are reimbursed by payors. Wisconsin Medicaid wishes to expand this cost-effective program.

Pharmacy category - Charitable Pharmacy of Central Ohio won the award for its collaborative and innovative model providing comprehensive pharmacy services for vulnerable patients who may otherwise lack access to essential prescription medications. The Charitable Pharmacy of Central Ohio demonstrated success in medication optimization, using a longitudinal model that allows for continuity of patient care.

"PQA is very excited to partner with the Community Pharmacy Foundation on this award to recognize these strong examples of innovation," said Laura Cranston , chief executive officer of PQA. "Our congratulations to both Dr. Trapskin and the professional team at the Charitable Pharmacy of Central Ohio for their creativity and hard work. We commend Dr. Trapskin's contributions to pharmacy practice with measurable improvements in healthcare quality. We also applaud the Charitable Pharmacy of Central Ohio for optimizing medication outcomes for vulnerable populations. Patients should always be the focal point of healthcare quality innovations."

Brian Jensen, who serves on the PQA and CPF Board of Directors, lauded the award as a celebration of creativity in community pharmacy. "In the evolution of a caring profession, the time is right to showcase examples of innovation in community pharmacy practice impacting quality. CPIQ joins with other PQA awards in identifying, celebrating and promoting these best practices. It is through the broad uptake of these new and innovative ideas that community pharmacy will gain recognition from the provider and payer communities as an integral care partner."

About PQA:

The Pharmacy Quality Alliance (PQA) is a non-profit organization committed to

optimizing health by advancing the quality of medication use. PQA, a recognized leader in quality measure development, is dedicated to improving the safe and appropriate use of medications, researching the impact of quality measurement, and providing education on quality-based healthcare. Established in 2006, PQA is a transparent, consensus-based, multi-stakeholder organization representing over 230 member organizations including healthcare payers, health plans, community pharmacies, physician providers, life sciences organizations, state and federal government agencies, academic institutions, standard setting/accreditation organizations, health information technology (HIT) partners, and other stakeholders interested in improving the quality of the medication-use system. For more information, please visit www.PQAalliance.org .

About the Community Pharmacy Foundation:

The Community Pharmacy Foundation (CPF) is a non-profit organization founded in 2000 to advance community pharmacy practice and patient care delivery through grant funding and resource sharing. Funding priorities include topics that highlight new and emerging patient care services that are financially sustainable, transferable, and replicable in community pharmacy practice. Resources are posted for each grantee and special website sections are compiled for toolkit materials and journal publications. For more information about the Community Pharmacy Foundation, please visit www.communitypharmacyfoundation.org .

About the Pharmacy Society of Wisconsin:

The Pharmacy Society of Wisconsin (PSW) is the state professional society for pharmacists in Wisconsin. It serves and represents over 4,000 pharmacists and pharmacy practices. PSW has been a champion for pharmacy quality since its inception in 1997. PSW is designed so that its members can work together, help one another, and advance the pharmacy profession with the singular purpose of enhancing the lives of people in Wisconsin. Please visit www.pswi.org for more information.

About the Charitable Pharmacy of Central Ohio:

The Charitable Pharmacy of Central Ohio's primary purpose is to increase access to affordable prescription medications for low-income, uninsured, and underinsured Franklin County residents who experience gaps in their insurance coverage and/or challenges in accessing medications. The pharmacy has engaged community leaders and policy makers to provide excellent community-based pharmacists' care and critically needed prescription medication. Through collaborations with pharmaceutical manufacturers, long term care facility pharmacies, the healthcare community, and Ohio colleges of pharmacy the Charitable Pharmacy has demonstrated a reduction in hospitalizations and increased healthcare security for its patients. Visit www.charitablepharmacy.org for more information.

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