Understanding the Role of the Pharmacist in Clinical Oncology: Jody Agena, PharmD, MBA

The pharmacists plays an important role when it comes to managing adverse effects, providing counseling, and bringing new protocols and initiatives to community oncology, says Jody Agena, PharmD, MBA, director of pharamcy operations, Virginia Cancer Specialists.

This transcript was lightly edited for clarity; captions were auto-generated

Transcript

How can the pharmacist help manage side effects and support adherence to complex oncology regimens?

The clinical pharmacist in our practice plays an instrumental role in managing the side effects of the patients, safety, and clinical education, not only for the patients, but for the nursing staff as well as the providers. I think the pharmacist plays a key role in not only managing these side effects, but also counseling the patients and counseling on SOPs [standard operating procedures], protocols, and initiatives in the practice. I think the value that the pharmacist brings to a community practice in this community oncology setting is vital.

What strategies can pharmacists use to identify and prevent drug interactions or duplications in patients with multiple prescriptions?

This is an evolving field. I'm biased as a pharmacist; however, especially in the community oncology setting, it’s a newish type of multidisciplinary practice that is more and more embedded into the patient care model. What I mean by that is, I think a lot of the providers are starting to see the value that pharmacists bring, as far as an ancillary or supportive staff type of model. Providers don't have the time or bandwidth to look at drug interactions, to look complicated regimens, to look at sequencing, even to look at the appropriate antiemetics and supportive care and managing the clinical safety of these patients. More and more drugs, new medications are coming out on a daily basis, and it's impossible to keep up—especially when you're a community oncology provider, where you're seeing every single disease type under the sun. It's very difficult to keep up.