SOS Rx

Personal Medication Record Project

Work Plan

April 7, 2004

Objective: The Personal Medication Record systems change initiative will define an outreach effort to clarify the roles of consumers, providers and other healthcare participants in the use and maintenance of accurate and up-to-date medications lists to be available at the point of care, regardless of type and location.

Summary: This project will: 1) develop criteria to include in the Personal Medication Record (PMR) and a template for the PMR, 2) charge industry stakeholders to establish and adopt the PMR template, and 3) send a clear message to consumers about roles, responsibilities and benefits when maintaining an accurate Personal Medication Record.

Point Person- Andrew Barbash, Medical Records Institute.

Steps:

· Develop an inventory of “best case” examples of present activity and projects on Personal Medication Records. Also included in this inventory will be what various vendors and organizations are developing and deploying in support of the Personal Medication Record. Based on the inventory, develop a draft definition of the PMR for the expert panel to refine.

• Invite and convene an expert panel, including stakeholders from the electronic health record industry, organizations and institutions encouraging medication record management, and the government. This expert panel will

• Define the Personal Medication Record, including its content, functions, workflow and information as a subset of the Personal Health Record. Develop a set of inclusion criteria and a template for a Personal Medication Record.
• Affirm the assumption of this initiative around the relationship of the Personal Medication Record to enhanced outpatient medication management.
• Identify the technologies and the use of the technologies to support the Personal Medication Record.
• Define those aspects of operationalizing the enhanced Personal Medication Record that are independent of any particular type of technology that is used. (An example would be training elderly people to keep an accurate list on paper and bring it when visiting any health provider, then have it updated if dosages are changed.)
• Identify the barriers to the adoption and widespread use of the Personal Medication Record by consumers, as well as by other stakeholders. This would include discussion of government policies and regulatory issues.
• Determine the roles and responsibilities of all stakeholders and what incentives should be established to reach the goal of standard Personal Medication Records for the healthcare industry and for consumers.
• Expected outcomes of panel meeting: 1) set of criteria to include in the PMR, 2) a template for the Personal Medication Record, and 3) a context for moving forward with the campaign.

• Public outreach to promote the Personal Medication Record, building on what the expert panel has discussed.

• Consider various education and communication issues impacting the success of establishing a Personal Medication Record.

• Develop a clear message for consumers that maintaining a PMR is a routine, good health practice for themselves and their families. Conduct focus groups to test messages and Personal Medication Record template.
• Develop messages for all coalition members to implement

• Promote the development and adoption of inclusion criteria and a template for the Personal Medication Record by all stakeholders, including providers, vendors, and decision- and policy-makers.
• Work with key organizations to implement change – JCAHO, pharmacists, payors, AARP
• Provide a clear message to all stakeholders
• Assure that federal, state, and local government agencies understand and promote standards for a Personal Medication Record.

Timeframe: Initial activity, meetings, and launch of consumer outreach in 2004. Additional outreach and development in the following year.

Timeline:

Jan – Mar

• Contact CMS regarding Medicare discount cards publication and opportunity to include information on Personal Medication Record.
• Identify those who should be on expert panel
• Establish meeting place and date for expert panel
• Invite participants to meeting
• Initial development of inventory

Apr 7 – Report to the full coalition on progress to date

April – June

• Determine materials to be distributed to expert panel for productive meeting
• Identify stakeholder organizations and obtain information summarizing their current work in Personal Medication Record.
• Finalize inventory

• Hold experts panel meeting
• Evaluate work product from meeting
• Draft preliminary report of meeting
• Begin outreach to all relevant stakeholders on inclusion criteria and template
• Determine initial messages for outreach to consumers

July – September

• Hold focus groups to clarify message to consumers
• Revise message as necessary based on focus groups
• Full coalition ratifies consumer message
• Establish plan for outreach to consumers, working with coalition members and the media
• Hold second meeting of experts panel if necessary
• Proceed with plan for promoting inclusion criteria/template

October – December

• Launch consumer messaging outreach
• Continue to work on promoting inclusion criteria/template
• Evaluate progress of project and plan for 2005

Budget

SOS Rx has initial funding from Express Scripts to host experts meeting(s), to hold focus groups, and conduct initial launch of consumer education outreach.