Pharmacists Improving Health at the Worksite

The current US health care system is focused on treating the medical determinants of health. However, research shows that approximately 80% of the variance in a population's health is determined by the nonmedical determinants of health. The care, health outcomes, and cost of an individual or population may be improved if the focus of the health care system were modified to place a greater emphasis on the non-determinants of health. Employee health has been identified as an area that may be able to improve individual health and the health of the community. Reviewed in this article are the outcomes of a pharmacist-run employee health program that focuses on the nondeterminants of health to improve the care, health outcomes, and costs of health care for one employer.