Results of the American Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation Pharmacy Special Interest Group Practice Survey – Understanding Today to Meet the Needs of Tomorrow

The National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) has estimated that the number of hematopoietic stem cell transplants (HSCTs) performed will double by 2015 as compared to 2010.   The NMDP also projects a shortage of physicians, physician assistants, nurses, nurse practitioners, and pharmacists.  In response to this anticipated shortage, the American Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (ASBMT) Pharmacy Special Interest Group (SIG) was created in 2012.  The ASBMT Pharmacy SIG recognized the need to engage non-physician providers in the care of patients and supplement the training of such practitioners.   The ASBMT Pharmacy SIG has prioritized the education of these practitioners and has successfully developed and implemented the Fundamentals of HSCT course to address this issue.

Another priority of the ASBMT Pharmacy SIG was to determine the value of HSCT pharmacists in clinical practice.  Thus, a survey was conducted in January 2014 to collect baseline data of the current ASBMT Pharmacy SIG make-up and practice patterns.  The survey was distributed to approximately 250 participants and 56 surveys were returned.  Of the 56 responders, most practitioners worked in academic medical centers (91%) with the majority of centers performing less than 300 HSCTs per year (85%).  Most institutions had 3 or fewer pharmacists dedicated to HSCT services (68%).  The highest level of training and certification for the majority of pharmacists practicing in HSCT was a post-graduate year 2 oncology pharmacy practice residency (64%) and a board certification in oncology pharmacy (61%), respectively. Though the majority of practitioners spent anywhere from 50-100% of their time dedicated to clinical activities, only 25% of practitioners had an established collaborative practice protocol in place.  Furthermore, most HSCT pharmacists spent 20% or less of their time devoted to teaching, administrative, or research activities.  Many practitioners were involved with pharmacy organizations and spent time outside of their clinical duties to work on publications and professional development. 

The results of this survey provide a snapshot of the current HSCT pharmacy climate and may be used as a tool to educate healthcare practitioners on roles and responsibilities of HSCT pharmacists.  These results may also serve as foundation for the development of HSCT pharmacist competencies in the future and a framework for future analyses, such as determination of value of services, which in turn, could support the justification of HSCT pharmacy services.