Best Practices in Treatment and Management of Beta Thalassemia: The Pharmacist’s Role in the Care Continuum

Description:,Treatments for beta thalassemia include regular blood transfusions, iron chelation therapy, and supportive care practices. However, lifelong blood transfusions are associated with several serious risks and adverse effects that can negatively affect patients’ quality of life. As such, nonadherence to therapy remains an important barrier that pharmacists on the multidisciplinary care team must work to address. This panel discussion will focus on tactics pharmacists can implement in practice to improve patient adherence to therapy, manage patient care and transitions as they age, and communicate with patients about efficacy and safety of emerging therapies.,Educational Objectives:,At the completion of this activity, participants will be able to:,• Identify therapies that constitute current standards of care and current clinical best practices for treating beta thalassemia,• Explain the role of emerging therapies entering the market in disease management and their paradigm-changing potential,• Illustrate the importance of specialty pharmacists in managing beta-thalassemia and medication adverse events