OBJECTIVES: In rheumatoid arthritis (RA), the use of RAPID3 assessments to meet treat-to-target goals is endorsed by the 2021 ACR guidelines. In November 2020, the Baylor Scott & White Specialty Pharmacy implemented a new service that included more frequent collection of RAPID3 scores and standardized provider communication for patients co-managed by a Baylor Scott & White Rheumatology Clinic. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of this new service on RA disease activity.

METHODS: RA patients with a first fill date for a new biologic medication, referred to as the index date, from January 2020 through November 2020 were included in the pre-intervention group and patients with an index date from December 2020 through May 2021 were included in the post-intervention group. Before the new service started, patients were followed under a protocol of less frequent RAPID3 assessments that occurred every six months; once the service began, patients were followed using an algorithm in which patients with higher disease activity were contacted more frequently. All RAPID3 scores were collected from the specialty pharmacy’s clinical tracking software. Descriptive statistics were performed.

RESULTS: 86% of patients in the pre-intervention group (n=7) compared with 100% of patients in the post-intervention group (n=10) had high/moderate disease activity at baseline. Within a 6-month follow-up period in both groups, the percentage of high/moderate disease activity patients decreased by 30% in the post-intervention group and remained the same in the pre-intervention group.

CONCLUSIONS: Disease activity scores improved in RA patients participating in more frequent collection of RAPID3 score and standardized provider communication by the specialty pharmacy, although this analysis is limited by the small sample size. These results support the positive impact increased specialty services may have on patient health outcomes; pharmacies should continue to expand and track outcomes of these initiatives.