Professor promotes pharmacists’ role in cardiometabolic care

Daniel Riche (far right) advises fellow cardiometabolic clinic team members about the best medications for patients under their care.

University of Mississippi pharmacy professor is working to expand the role of pharmacists in the care of patients with cardiometabolic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and stroke.

“As a certified diabetes educator and in my work treating patients with all types of metabolic diseases, I see how my knowledge and experience benefits patients,” said Daniel Riche, associate professor of pharmacy practice. “I believe that they live healthier lives because a pharmacist is involved in their care.”

To emphasize this point, Riche accepted an invitation to the 2014 Cardiometabolic Health Congress in Boston, Oct. 22-25. The annual event is the top meeting for around 1,500 clinicians to discuss cardiometabolic health. This year’s CMHC curriculum featured topics ranging from obesity management to the long-term effects of metabolic surgery.

Riche was the first pharmacist in the event’s nine years to be invited as a distinguished faculty member.

“We are so proud of Danny for his commitment to advancing the profession of pharmacy in what is a very important area of health care – especially in Mississippi,” said David D. Allen, the UM School of Pharmacy’s dean. “His participation in CMHC will drive home the significance of the pharmacist in improving patient outcomes.”

At the conference, Riche presented on “Integrated Management of the Complexities of Cardiometabolic Diseases: A Patient-Centric Team Approach” with a focus on pharmacist intervention. He also served on a panel with other clinicians to examine the issue.

“Even though this presentation is a small step, I’m very excited about helping to further the concept of pharmacist integration,” Riche said. “This type of high-visibility outreach serves a larger purpose of expanding the impact of pharmacists across the entire health care continuum. Hopefully, it will also help to strengthen our profession’s case for provider-status recognition.”

Riche said it is critical for pharmacists to communicate their positive effect on patient care.

“By disseminating the knowledge we have and expanding our relationships, we each can help to grow the influence that pharmacy has and improve the impact of our services,” he said.