Defining and Advancing Ambulatory Care Pharmacy Practice: It Is Time to Lengthen Our Stride

Purpose. This paper reviews the basic tenets of ambulatory care pharmacy practice, including (1) the historical development of patient-centered care provide by pharmacists, (2) the need for and value of comprehensive medication management, (3) the education, training, and qualifications of pharmacists, and (4) demonstrated improvement in health and health care outcomes from pharmacists ’ services. Summary. When ambulatory care pharmacists engage in patient care to their full capacity, physician time is saved, access to care is improved, and clinical and economic outcomes are enhanced. There is a need for ambulatory care pharmacists to work toward optimizing safe medication use and optimizing medication therapy for patients with diabetes, asthma, cardiovascular disease, and renal disease. Other opportunities for the development of ambulatory care pharmacy services exist in preventive care, precision therapeutics, medication therapy management, mitigation of health care disparities, and in implementing national health care reform. Interprofessional patient care teams should include ambulatory care pharmacists in patient-centered medical homes and accountable care organizations. Ambulatory care pharmac