Association News
CDC Highlights Tennessee Pharmacists’ Diabetes Education Program

In a recent report, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) highlights the success of the Tennessee Pharmacists Association (TPA) – via its Tennessee Pharmacists Research and Education Foundation (TPREF) – and the Tennessee Department of Health (TDH) in increasing access to and participation in diabetes self-management education (DSME). CDC attributes the success of Tennessee’s program to “targeted outreach, partnership, technical assistance, grant opportunities, and reimbursement initiatives.”
This important TPA/TPREF effort is funded by a grant of $850,000 from CDC and TDH to explore the role of pharmacists as providers of care and to expand the integration of pharmacists into collaborative, team-based models of care as non-physician practitioners.The initiative is facilitated by partnerships with the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) and the American Association of Diabetes Educators (AADE).
TPA/TPREF recently received additional funds to involve Tennessee’s six schools and colleges of pharmacy in helping to create tools and resources specific to hypertension and diabetes prevention, care, and management. These tools and resources will focus on engaging patients, the general public, and health care providers, to increase patients’ access to education and further promote the goals of the grant to improve the health of Tennesseans with diabetes and hypertension.
If you have questions about this initiative, please contact TPA/TPREF at 615-256-3023 or tpref@tnpharm.org.