Designing an evaluation to support funding and pharmacy model expansion

Gathering credible evidence through independent and rigorous evaluation was critical to decisions around expansion and continued funding for the Community Pharmacy Primary Care Clinic model.

Sector:

Healthcare

Primary service:

Evaluation

Client:

Pharmacy Association of Nova Scotia (PANS)

Project:

Community Pharmacy Primary Care Clinics (CPPCC)

Pharmacies across Nova Scotia

Pharmacists, patients, and other healthcare professionals provided feedback

Over 0

The situation:

PANS, in partnership with the Government of Nova Scotia, piloted a new model for delivering primary care in community pharmacy settings, the CPPCC. This project was intended to support more effective, efficient, and accessible healthcare for all Nova Scotians. Pharmacies across Nova Scotia were selected to operate a CPPCC with pharmacists working to their full scope of practice to provide effective care for patients. Within the pilot project, many new services and strategies were also tested, with potential funding and policy implications for pharmacies and primary care delivery in Nova Scotia. Effective evaluation was essential to provide ongoing evidence to support project implementation and decision-making.

Complexities:

33 pharmacy sites across Nova Scotia
Several partners providing input to guide the evaluation
Many project changes throughout the evaluation
Public attention and pressure on the important issue of access to primary care

The approach:

RPI worked closely with PANS to design an evaluation framework and implement the evaluation. The evaluation framework included a logic model, key performance indicators, data collection methods and sources, and a detailed implementation plan.
Data collection tools were created, including focus group and interview guides, surveys, databases for clinical and administrative data, and case study criteria and methods.

RPI conducted the following key evaluation activities:

Collected data from 33 participating CPPCC pharmacies across Nova Scotia, about 5,500 patients, and over 350 other healthcare professionals.
Reported clinical and administrative data regularly to provide ongoing insights to decision makers.
Analyzed qualitative and quantitative data.
Synthesized and integrated findings from all lines of evidence into detailed technical reports and clear and easy to understand reporting for partners and the public.

Key measures included administrative indicators such as number of visits and time required for services, as well as outcomes such as access to care, patient value and satisfaction, clinical improvements for patients, collaboration between healthcare professionals, and value for money for the health system. The final evaluation report for this pilot project is publicly available.

The impact:

The evaluation directly informed the government’s decision to continue funding for CPPCC and expand the model to additional sites, increasing access to primary care for patients across Nova Scotia. The evaluation findings helped PANS communicate project activities and improvements to government throughout the pilot project. Results from the interim and final evaluations supported PANS in its negotiation with government on a new tariff agreement for pharmacy services and a more sustainable funding model for providing primary care in community pharmacy settings.

“RPI consultants have been fantastic to work with. Their work is always conducted on time and in an extremely comprehensive and professional manner. They consistently bring fresh and innovative ideas to help us maximize the quality and utility of our projects.”

Allison Bodnar, CEO, Pharmacy Association of Nova Scotia

About RPI

RPI helps organizations find and identify insights to support decision-making and drive evidence-backed change. The RPI team brings extensive experience in the areas of health, accessibility, education, community services, and other public sector services.

Organizations come to RPI for support when:

They need credible evidence to support decision-making, especially around funding or program/policy change
They need help setting direction, planning for, and navigating complex policy, implementation, and system-level changes
They need support hearing and making sense of diverse perspectives to inform implementation and next steps

Reach out to talk about how RPI can help you.