Paula Harris, CPhT is the Lead Advocate for the Medication Assistance/Recovery Program for the Billings Clinic in Montana
Paula was nominated by Daniall Ablott , her co-worker who said:
Paula has been a medication assistance advocate for over 5 years with the Billings Clinic. She is a very compassionate and caring individual. She has implemented and maintained the MAP program at the Billings Clinic and is a key to making it work. Paula's main job duties are helping cancer patients with their medications, but she also assists patients upon discharge from the hospital with their medication and costs. Paula is also the lead advocate for the medication assistance advocates and is very familiar with all of the ins and outs of routine medication and their programs.
A brief interview with Paula:
How did you come to be doing this kind of work?
At the time I was hired the concept of an integrated city-wide, medication assistance program was in its implementaion stage. I came from working within the City-County Health Dept's Clinic where I had built relationships and work experience as one of the lead pharmacy technicians. Previously, medication assistance throughout the city/count was being provided by an under-funded, over-worked City-County Health Clinic which resulted in long lines, fragmented care and extreme utilization of hospital emergency department services and county/charitable organization resources. With the full involvement and partnership between the City-County Health Dept Clinic and two regional competing hospitals, then patient's medicaton needs could be managed more efficiently, providing better customer service, and thereby utilize the most appropriate, cost effective resources at the point-of-care rather than downstream in the emergency room. I am part of the many who started the implementation.
Describe a typical day.
I really do not have a typical day....I assess what needs to be done and the patients that need to be seen by the referrals I get from all over the organization. I follow up on applications and drug shipments on a daily basis. I'm a trouble shooter so alot of the calls are to help in solving problems and coming up with the best solution for the patients needs.
What is the hardest part of your job?
The hardest part of my job would have to be when you have an individual that you know really needs help and there isn't a drug program, foundation, or grant that can assist that patient.
If you could change one thing to make your job easier, what would it be?
I really can't think of anything that I would change.
Give us one tip to pass on to other advocates.
Look at each patients case individually, at every possible avenue/angle to help them come up with a way to get the medication they need. There is almost always a way. Be determined! Also, do research within your organization to come up with ways of finding those patients that need assistance. Do not rely on referrals alone. I have the financial dept send me a report weekly that lists particular drugs of all the self pay patients that have been seen in the last week. With that I contact those patient to offer help in recovery those medications. It saves the patient potentially thousands of dollars and the organization from a possible write off.
