2023 Incentive Grant Recipient: Alexander Wilcox, PharmD
Project Proposal: Clinician Attitudes Toward Referring Patients to Pharmacists for Tobacco Cessation Services
Alexander Wilcox, PharmD currently serves as a PGY1 Community Pharmacy Resident at HealthLinc in Valparaiso, Indiana.
Tobacco use remains the leading known preventable cause of death, impacting nearly every organ in the body while also compromising the quality of life, and the financial burden is high—in the U.S., an estimated $170 billion is spent annually for inpatient services, outpatient services, and prescription drugs. The goal is that the information gathered from this research project will help to shed light on the barriers that prevent healthcare professionals from referring patients to pharmacists for tobacco cessation services and the facilitators that encourage that referral. The research team hopes that the information will be used to grow the collaborative care for our patients and increase the number of patients receiving tobacco cessation services from pharmacists.
"The objective of this study is to assess clinicians’ (physicians, nurse practitioners, dentists, and behavioral health counselors) (a) current referral patterns to pharmacists for tobacco cessation services, (b) intention to refer patients to pharmacists in the future, and (c) perceived barriers and facilitators to referrals."
"I am honored to receive an Incentive Grant this year and am eager to see the project's results. Specifically, I am enthusiastic to learn more about the barriers and facilitators involved in healthcare providers referring patients to pharmacists for tobacco cessation services. It makes me excited to learn this information because I believe it will be useful for growing the practice and improving our communities. The results should give pharmacists areas to focus on to gain greater buy-in from other healthcare professionals and therefore increase the ability of the healthcare team to serve our patients."