How Many Patients Can a Pharmacist Reasonably Manage? Estimating An Appropriate Panel Size

Authors:
Benjamin King, PharmD, BCACP
Jubilee Winar, PharmD
Jasmin Ortiz, PharmD

Reviewers:
Kristy Butler, PharmD, BCACP
Thomas Lancaster, PharmD, BCACP, BCPS
Yhazmyne Hawkins, PharmD
Kathryn Schroeder, PharmD
Amanda Bitterman, PharmD

Citation:
Ozbay N, King BS, Gothard MD, King CA. Assessing appropriate panel size and optimization of quality metrics for ambulatory care pharmacists in the Primary Care Setting. Am J Health-Syst Pharm 2023; 80(1): e23-e28.

The Problem

The prevalence, complexity, and broad financial and societal cost of chronic disease is a significant, and growing, concern in the United States and other high-income countries. Collaborative practice agreements (CPA) between pharmacists and licensed independent practitioners (“providers”) are used in the primary care setting to improve the quality of patient care and reduce the risk of provider burnout.  There have been several studies proving the benefits of involving pharmacists in the primary care setting.  And there are some recommendations regarding an appropriate physician-patient panel size per pharmacist.  In contrast, there have been few studies examining the ideal ambulatory care pharmacist-patient panel size.