ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The National Association of Chain Drug Stores Foundation has gone live with an online database that enables the public to find out about the range of services that pharmacists provide.

Accessed at www.nacdsfoundation.org/PCD, the Patient Care Database is intended to heighten the public’s awareness of key health care topics, such as medication adherence and medication therapy management (MTM), as well as archive and track pharmacist-provided patient care activities and services in the community pharmacy setting, the NACDS Foundation said Wednesday.

The database encompasses media articles, academic studies, research materials and other resources related to the services provided by pharmacists, including MTM, vaccination administration, diagnostic screenings and patient counseling. A search tool lets users find information by keyword, and a browse function allows them to search by such criteria as clinical service, pharmacy type, disease state, geography, outcome (health or economic) article type and environment (rural, urban or suburban).

The NACDS Foundation said the database will help identify trends in pharmacy and enable academia and pharmacy students to study, track and evaluate the short-term and long-term public health benefits of expanded pharmacist-provided health care.

"Tremendous collaboration between the NACDS Foundation and the University of Tennessee Center for Medication Therapy Management at the College of Pharmacy made possible this important public resource," NACDS Foundation President Edith Rosato said in a statement. "The Patient Care Database will provide a wealth of knowledge about the multitude of services that community pharmacists deliver to patients that contribute to the advancement of public health."

In development for a year, the project was launched under the leadership of the University of Tennessee Center’s director, Dr. Lawrence Brown, PharmD, who the foundation said is known for his MTM expertise and work in the United States and abroad.

The database’s launch comes as NACDS and other pharmacy trade organizations are working hard to make sure that lawmakers and regulators involved in health care reform grasp the pivotal role that community pharmacists can play in reducing costs and improving health outcomes.

"With the expansion of community pharmacy’s patient-centric health care services, the database is a timely resource that can increase awareness and understanding among patients, medical professionals, researchers, consumers and the media of the health care services pharmacists provide the public," noted Rosato.