Dr. Joyce Y. Lee Awarded Innovative Pharmacy Practice Award by the California Society of Health-System Pharmacists (CSHP)

Dr. Joyce Y. Lee’s clinical service, “Digital Innovation to Grow Quality Care Through Interprofessional Teamwork for the Underserved (DIG IT),” has been recognized by the California Society of Health-System Pharmacists (CSHP) with the Innovative Pharmacy Practice Award (IPPA)!

CSHP “represents thousands of pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and students across California who serve patients and the public through promotion of wellness, patient safety, and the optimal use of medications.” Each year, CSHP bestows the IPPA to one service lead who has pioneered inventive pharmacy practice, providing exceptional care for patients.

Dr. Lee shared, “I am thrilled to receive this award, as it serves as a recognition of the pharmacist’s role in advancing practice through digital health and reaffirms the powerful impact that interprofessional care can have on patient care.”

DIG IT combines comprehensive medication management, digital health monitoring technology, and patient-centered care through interprofessional collaboration to address diabetes, hypertension, and other selected chronic conditions among medically underserved populations with social determinants of health. Through this initiative, Dr. Lee and the DIG IT team, which consists of family physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and pharmacists (including Dr. Sarah McBane of the UC Irvine School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences), were able to better the experience of patients, observe timely improvement in patient health markers, and reduce healthcare costs for the health system and patients.

DIG IT is currently incorporated into the practice at UCI Health Family Health Centers, which has locations in Santa Ana and Anaheim. UCI Health Family Health Centers is the oldest Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in Orange County. With federal funding, Federally Qualified Health Centers operate as nonprofit entities that provide healthcare to medically underserved people.

Through DIG IT, patients use digital health monitoring technology to collect information on their blood pressure, heart rate, and weight from the comfort of home. The data is interfaced with the electronic health record system, allowing clinical pharmacists to track these readings and perform timely medication adjustments to achieve individualized health targets. An IT team is available to address any technology issues, helping to ensure that patients are using the devices accurately. Healthcare professionals involved in every aspect of a patient’s care can observe this data, enhancing interprofessional collaboration.

Dr. Lee embarked on the DIG IT project in 2020 in the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, providing close monitoring and digital interventions in spite of healthcare disruptions and restrictions. While in-person healthcare is more accessible for many at this time, DIG IT continues to address the needs of medically underserved people who may not be able to attend appointments as regularly as necessary.

At UCI Health Family Health Centers, 99% of the patients live below 200% of the federal poverty level, and 11% are uninsured. Many do not have transportation and work multiple jobs and long hours. DIG IT allows patients with certain chronic conditions to attend telemedicine appointments without taking time off from work, minimizing lost-to-follow-up rate. In a quality assurance study conducted by the DIG IT team, 76% of patients achieved their blood pressure target within three months. 

The team hopes for the DIG IT model to expand beyond its current reach and become a norm for providing healthcare to underserved people.

“The pharmacist-involved collaborative care model has been around for decades, but it has yet to become the standard of care to benefit all patients in need. I hope policy makers, administrators, and health systems will consider incorporating such a model to benefit all patients, including the medically underserved,” said Dr. Lee.