EBNHC Receives Federal Pharmacy Award

East Boston, MA, October 16, 2009—The East Boston Neighborhood Health Center (EBNHC) has received the Patient Safety and Clinical Pharmacy Services Collaborative’s 2009 Clinical Pharmacy Services Improvement Award from the federal Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).

EBNHC was recognized for making improvements to clinical pharmacy service integration that ensure the appropriate selection and utilization of medications. The HRSA award was given to teams of health care providers that have successfully established clinical pharmacy services and were able to show evidence of improvement in an area of service.

“At the East Boston Neighborhood Health Center, patient safety is at the forefront of all of our efforts,” said EBNHC President and Chief Executive Officer Jack Cradock. “We work with vulnerable populations, from elders on many medications to families with language barriers, and it is incumbent upon us to create the safety systems that ensure safe adherence with prescribed medications. It is an honor for our organization to be recognized for these efforts.”

The HRSA Patient Safety and Clinical Pharmacy Services Collaborative is a national movement to improve the quality of care provided in the United States through the assimilation of health care providers and increased provision of clinical pharmacy services. These efforts target improvement in health and safety for the most at-risk, highest cost, and most medically complex patients.

“Quality and safety are driving forces in the work that all of our clinicians do here,” said Anita Morris, EBNHC Senior Vice President for Clinical Services. “Our staff has really worked hard to ensure that medications are used in the safest manner possible. Their efforts make East Boston Neighborhood Health Center a model in the area of clinical pharmacy safety.”

The East Boston Neighborhood Health Center and other award winners were recently honored at a national meeting of the Collaborative in Dallas, Texas.