May 10 Pharmacy Week in Review: Nurses as Leaders in Health Care, DNA May Predict Treatment Resistance in Certain Patients

This weekly video program provides our readers with an in-depth review of the latest news, product approvals, FDA rulings, and more. Our Week in Review is a can't miss for the busy pharmacy professional.

Nicole Grassano, Host: Hello and welcome to the Pharmacy Times News Network. I’m Nicole Grassano your host for our Pharmacy Week in Review.

Study results suggest that adding benzodiazepines to antipsychotic medications may not be as effective in reducing aggression in psychotic patients as previously believed, Pharmacy Times reported.

Investigators gathered data from 400 patient charts between 2012 and 2014 and analyzed the first 2 weeks of hospitalization. Two groups were defined: those who were only prescribed antipsychotics and those who were prescribed antipsychotics and benzodiazepines. They compared the levels of aggression in the 2 groups.

The authors concluded that using benzodiazepines with antipsychotics in patients with aggressive behavior does not affect the level of aggression any more than atypical antipsychotics alone. Other analyses referenced in the report support this conclusion.

The results of a study through the BDO Center for Healthcare Excellence & Innovation and the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing shows that nurses have the skills necessary for leadership, but they are less likely to be given the opportunity to fill a leadership position, Contemporary Clinic reported.

Business and clinical leaders rank certain values such as “interface of clinical innovation and technology” and “design-thinking for process change” as some of the most valuable skills for nurse innovators in their organizations. However, despite the goal of both sides of the industry, business and clinical, to ensure more opportunities for nurse innovators at the leadership level by 2025, the study results show that there is a lack of nurse innovators being elevated to these positions.

The changing landscape of health care necessitates a shift from bedside to boardroom. In fact, critical areas, such as an aging population and mental health, are where leaders agree that nurses will have the most opportunity to transform and improve care by 2025.

New research has identified a certain type of DNA marker that may predict poor outcomes and treatment resistance in patients with multiple myeloma, Specialty Pharmacy Times reported.

Researchers investigated the genomic landscape of 795 newly diagnosed patients with multiple myeloma. Although 66.4% of these patients had recurrent translocations, very few were prognostic of outcome, according to the study authors. The results of the study showed that 78% of IgL-MYC translocations co-occur with hyperploid disease, which is a marker of standard risk. This indicates that these translocation can be misclassified. However, by comparison with other markers, translocations are rarely tested for in the clinic.

The investigators concluded that these translocations are likely prognostic of poor outcomes in multiple myeloma, whereas the rarity of other types of IgL translocations makes it difficult to assess which of those events also contribute to poor outcomes.

Pharmacists may get more questions about Chantix, if patients have seen a recent commercial for the prescription medication. In the spot, called “Camping Turkey” the narrator says that it may be hard to quit smoking, “cold turkey” so Chantix can help patients quit “slow turkey.” According to the commercial, Chantix can ease patients into quitting by reducing the urge to smoke.

For more great coverage and practical information for today’s pharmacist, visit our website and sign up for our Daily eNews. And don’t forget to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Thanks for watching our Pharmacy Week in Review. I’m Nicole Grassano at the Pharmacy Times News Network.