COVID-19 host genetic risk study conducted at community pharmacies: Implications for public health, research and pharmacists’ scope of practice

Community pharmacists serve a large, diverse population of patients, resulting in the potential to utilize community pharmacies as recruitment sites for clinical research. Beyond traditional roles as one of the most accessible health care professionals in the US healthcare system, pharmacists have played a major role in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, administering hundreds of thousands of vaccines and tests. However, less emphasis is placed on the ability to leverage community pharmacies as research-focused partners for clinical studies. In this study, we demonstrate the feasibility and workflow of recruiting study participants from community pharmacies and confirm genetic markers of COVID-19 susceptibility. Specific genetic markers include those associated with COVID-19 infection risk (ACE2, TMEM27, and RAVER1), difficulty breathing (NOTCH4), and hospitalization (OAS3). In addition, collaboration with a clinical laboratory allowed for a more seamless consenting process without substantial training needs or workflow disruption at the community pharmacy site. The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated that the expansion of pharmacists’ scope of practice is a key factor in managing the population health crisis; this study demonstrates that pharmacies can also advance clinical research studies by serving as sites for patient recruitment from a large, diverse, and ambulatory study population.