Richard Faris, Chief Strategy and Growth Officer at PANTHERx Rare Specialty Pharmacy, joins John McMillen with The Medical Memory on this episode. The conversation centers around prioritizing patient-centric care in pharmacy practice, shifting away from focusing on lowest cost and reimbursing pharmacies for valuable services such as counseling and medication management. Participants emphasized the importance of adopting a person-centered approach, understanding the whole person beyond their medication use, and addressing adherence problems through education and collaboration. Reducing barriers to access, affordability, and understanding of medications was also crucial to improving patient care.

✨ Key Highlights:

• Dr. Faris discusses PANTHERx Rare's focus on rare diseases, including small patient populations and complex therapies, and the importance of patient-centered care.

• Suggestion for using tools like Medical Memory to educate patients on their medications and their impact on their lifestyle.

• Dr. Faris emphasizes reducing barriers and improving access to healthcare, particularly for vulnerable populations.

• He highlights the role of pharmacists as trusted healthcare providers and advocates for their patients' well-being.

👉 What should we do?

• Stop: Stop focusing on the lowest unit cost and start reimbursing pharmacies for the VALUE they deliver.

• Start: We should refer to those we serve as “people,” not “patients.” Medications are simply tools to help them achieve the lives they desire.

• Continue: Continue advocating for the people we serve and reducing access barriers in our complex healthcare system.