5. Economic Evaluation of Services Provided by Pharmacists

Abstract

Inappropriate drug therapy incurs considerable additional medical costs. As an approach to addres the issue of how drug therapy can be performed appropriately, pharmacists have been required to play a more active role in drug therapy. Thus pharmacist has attracted attention as a profession that plays a role in saving medical costs. This article introduces the Asheville Project in the United States as a case study of economic evaluation focusing on pharmaceutical care by pharmacists, specifically drug treatment for outpatients. Although studies to evaluate the professional competency of pharmacists are on the rise every year, few RCT studies have included cost-effective analysis. In Japan, no economic evaluation of pharmacists' services, which has a study design with a high level of evidence, has been reported.