"No one talks about health care value per dollar spent," and they should, he said. Merrill said the medical home model is potentially effective for many medical conditions that are inexpensive to manage but have substantial benefits for both employers and patients, such as diabetes, asthma, smoking, and hypertension.

Since implementing Perdue's Health Improvement Program (HIP), health care costs for the company have nearly flat-lined, said Merrill, while national average costs per company have risen. Under HIP, all employees, except at the administrative level, fill out a health risk appraisal. HIP then provides the company with baseline data for both the company and for each employee.

He asked the pharmacy students to prepare for major changes in their profession, including expanded health care duties in various kinds of medical home models.

Pharmacists are necessary to the medical care model because "physicians are not good at medication management, pharmacists are." He said that pharmacists are also good at drug interaction, are a trusted source of health care advice, and provide appropriate value for use. They are good at medication counseling and "when progressing into disease management, you are not stepping on anyone's toes."

The lecture is held annually in honor of Francis S. Balassone (1915-1972), a distinguished pharmacy leader who collaborated with the School of Pharmacy to develop the University of Maryland professional pharmacy program.

Source: Perdue Foods Inc.