Impact of pharmacist-managed erythropoiesis-stimulating agents clinics for patients with non-dialysis-dependent CKD.

BACKGROUND: Erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs) are associated with serious adverse events, and maintaining hemoglobin levels within a narrow range can be difficult. We examined the quality of ESA prescribing and monitoring in pharmacist-managed ESA clinics versus usual care in patients with non-dialysis-dependent chronic kidney disease (NDD-CKD).

STUDY DESIGN: Historical cohort.

SETTING & PARTICIPANTS: Outpatients receiving ESAs for NDD-CKD at 10 Veterans Affairs Medical Centers with both pharmacist-managed ESA clinics (n = 314) and physician-based care (ie, usual care; n = 91) and 6 sites with usual care only (n = 167) on January 1, 2009, were followed up for 6 months.

PREDICTOR: Type/site of care (ie, pharmacist-managed ESA clinic, usual care at ESA clinic site, usual-care site).

OUTCOMES: Primary outcomes were proportion of hemoglobin values in the target range of 10-12 g/dL, ESA dose, and frequency of hemoglobin monitoring. Factors associated with hemoglobin values out of target range were identified using multinomial logistic regression.

RESULTS: More hemoglobin values were in the target range in pharmacist-managed ESA clinics (71.1% vs 56.9% for usual-care sites; P < 0.001). The average 30-day dose of darbepoetin was 163 μg in pharmacist-managed ESA clinic patients versus 240 μg in usual-care site patients and 258 μg in usual-care patients at ESA clinic sites. For epoetin, corresponding average 30-day doses were 44,890 versus 47,141 and 57,436 IU. Veterans in pharmacist-managed ESA clinics had more hemoglobin measurements on average (5.8 vs 3.6 in usual-care sites and 3.8 in usual care at ESA clinic sites; P = 0.007). In the multinomial model, usual care was associated with hemoglobin levels out of target range, whereas heart failure and diabetes were associated with values in range.

LIMITATIONS: We could not assess whether different hemoglobin targets were used by usual-care providers.

CONCLUSIONS: Relative to usual care, pharmacist-managed clinics provided improved quality of ESA dosing and monitoring for patients with NDD-CKD.