A team at University of Florida (UF) Health has initiated a five-year research project to evaluate the use of pharmacogenetic testing in emergency rooms. The study, funded by a $3.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), aims to determine the feasibility, cost-effectiveness, and benefits of implementing precision medicine strategies to improve patient outcomes and reduce healthcare costs associated with repeat emergency room visits.
The project is jointly led by Julio Duarte, Pharm.D., Ph.D., an associate professor of pharmacotherapy and translational research in the UF College of Pharmacy, and Sophia Sheikh, M.D., an associate professor of emergency medicine at the UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville. The core hypothesis is that pharmacogenetic testing, which analyzes how a patient’s genetic makeup influences their responses to medications, will lead to a reduction in ER return visits, healthcare costs, medication ineffectiveness, and adverse side effects.
Project Components
The research project encompasses three main components. The first involves expanding pharmacogenetic testing resources for clinicians within the UF Health system. This includes enhancing computer-based decision support within electronic health records to alert clinicians when patients are at increased risk of side effects from specific medications. For patients receiving care outside of UF Health, the project will provide a card containing a QR code that clinicians can scan to access personalized drug recommendations.
The second component is a randomized clinical trial comparing patients with and without pharmacogenetic testing to determine if the testing effectively reduces emergency department visits. The third component is a cost-effectiveness analysis to assess the potential economic value of this precision medicine approach.
Impact and Future Directions
Duarte emphasized that the data gathered from this project will inform future clinical implementation efforts and larger, multi-site clinical trials. The ultimate goal is to achieve a better understanding of the benefits of personalized drug therapy and other precision medicine techniques in the ER setting. Sheikh highlighted the collaborative nature of the research, spanning two UF Health campuses, as a powerful example of how teamwork can improve healthcare for patients.
"Precision medicine provides clinicians with valuable information to individualize prescribing and patient care strategies. The thought is that we’ll get better results; happier, healthier patients; and hopefully, it’ll be more efficient and cost less," Duarte said.
