Daly and Jacobs receive IPRO Quality Award

IPRO is a non-profit healthcare quality evaluation organization that works with government agencies, providers and patients to implement innovative programs that bring policy ideas to life.

IPRO’s Quality Awards recognize outstanding performance by health care providers and stakeholders in New York State. These awards acknowledge exemplary healthcare quality improvement projects completed by healthcare organizations or providers in partnership with the IPRO Quality Innovation Network – Quality Improvement Organization (QIN-QIO), a collaboration of three organizations with decades of experience serving as Medicare QIOs.

Daly, clinical associate professor, and Jacobs, assistant professor, both of the UB School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (SPPS) Department of Pharmacy Practice, along with their team members Durdana Iqbal, PharmD, SPPS Pharmaceutical Health Services and Outcomes Fellow, Walter Gibson, SPPS data analyst, John Croce, RPh, President, CPESN NY and Managing Network Facilitator, Jessica Anderson, PharmD, Network Facilitator, Upstate NY, CPESN NY, and Alec Gillies, BS ’94, Network Lead Luminary, WNY Network, CPESN NY, were recognized for their innovative work from their collaboration with NY CPESN member pharmacies, specifically the implementation of a SDoH pharmacy program.

The overarching project titled, “Effectiveness of a Social Determinants of Health Pharmacy Program Implemented in Community Pharmacies,” looked to explore how community pharmacy practice continues to expand its role in public health. Through a mixed method approach, findings will allow for a better understanding of the training, workflow integration, and overall program implementation, which is necessary as new social needs services continue to grow within accessible pharmacy settings.

SPPS researchers, working alongside collaborators, developed and evaluated the program focused on optimizing implementation strategies that led to greater screening acceptance and referral uptake. The preliminary results from January through December 2023 show more than 1,000 screenings conducted, with 64% of them carried out in rural areas across the state.  The program demonstrates a high efficiency rate along with a 26% resolution referral rate. Common social needs identified included food insecurity, housing instability, and healthcare access. Further analysis evaluating health care utilization and economic measures are underway and will be completed by summer 2024.

Daly, Jacobs, and their team will be recognized at our SPPS Spring Celebration: Graduation and Awards Luncheon on May 17. They will also be honored at IPRO’s Annual Meeting and Luncheon on June 11 where they will be presented with their award.