Several “big data” research projects led by PittPharmacy associate professor Joshua Thorpe, PhD, MPH were presented at the 2016 AcademyHealth Annual Research Meeting June 24-28 in Boston, Mass.
Thorpe and PittPharmacy colleagues Assistant Professor Carolyn T. Thorpe, PhD, MPH and research coordinator Loren Schleiden presented three papers from his VA-R01 grant entitled, “Dual Use of VA-Medicare Drug Benefits and Unsafe Prescribing in Dementia Patients.” In this series of papers focused on veterans with dementia, Thorpe showed that receiving prescription medications from providers across unconnected health care systems (VA and Medicare) more than doubled the risk of unsafe prescribing and medication nonadherence. Thorpe’s presentation entitled, “Use of VA and Medicare Drug Benefits and Potentially Unsafe Prescribing among Veterans with Dementia” was featured in the Medicare theme poster walk. Poster walks are designed to give students and fellows an in-depth look into significant and thought-provoking thematic research. Together, their work showed the potential role of pharmacists as “medication coordinators” to ensure the highest quality of care is delivered to our most vulnerable veterans.
In his role as associate direct of analytics and research in the Veteran’s administration’s comprehensive end-of-life performance center, Thorpe’s work entitled “Using Machine-Learning Methods to Identify Key Drivers of Family Dissatisfaction with VA End-of-Life Care” was selected for inclusion in the AcademyHealth press program; a program that highlights some of the most important and newsworthy research being presented at AcademyHealth.
AcademyHealth is the professional home and leading national organization for health services researchers, policymakers, and health care practitioners and stakeholders. AcademyHealth works to improve the health and the performance of the health system by supporting the production and use of evidence to inform policy and practice.
Joshua Thorpe and Carolyn Thorpe are faculty members in the pharmacy and therapeutics department at PittPharmacy and Core Investigators the VA Pittsburgh’s Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion.
