Identifying a traditional productivity metric that represents pharmacy workload at UNC Hospitals Hillsborough Campus: A pilot study

PURPOSE: This study aimed to identify which traditional productivity metric-doses dispensed, medication charges, or patient days-most closely correlates with the workload of clinical pharmacists at UNC Hospitals Hillsborough Campus. METHODS: A modified Delphi process was used to define the work of clinical pharmacists. Pharmacists identified their routine clinical responsibilities, and a final list of direct patient care activities was developed. These activities were quantified using data from fiscal year 2024. The total number of clinical activities was compared to the traditional productivity metrics using Pearson correlation coefficients. RESULTS: Among the traditional metrics, medication charges demonstrated the strongest correlation with the sum of clinical activities (r = 0.75, P < 0.001), followed by doses dispensed (r = 0.70, P < 0.001). When orders verified were removed from the sum of clinical activities, patient days had the strongest correlation (r = 0.76, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: While no traditional metric fully captures the complexity of pharmacist clinical activities, medication charges may serve as the most practical surrogate under the current practice model at UNC Hillsborough.