The role of pharmacists has undergone a significant transformation. Expanding clinical roles in the community and hospital settings have led to opportunity for correctional facility pharmacists to expand their practice. This literature review identifies past and present roles of correctional pharmacists, along with areas for growth. Peer-reviewed and gray literature is described, outlining current and expanding pharmacist roles from 1997 to 2017. The literature reveals that health care provided in correctional facilities is shifting from a basic level of care to a greater role in inmate health and identifies the challenges and barriers that pharmacists meet. There is strong evidence to support the expanding role of pharmacists as primary care providers in the corrections setting through activities such as direct patient care, health care clinics, and medication management.

The clinical role of pharmacists in a correctional facility has not been fully described. We report the proportion of patients assessed by a pharmacist within 48 hours of admission to a large correctional facility. Of those assessed, the frequency and type of pharmacist interventions were described. A retrospective chart review was conducted for patients admitted to the Edmonton Remand Center (ERC) from September to November 2017. From 1,500 patients, 518 (34.5%) were assessed by a pharmacist, and 511 (98.6%) of those received one or more pharmacist interventions. Interventions were most commonly health care provider interactions (89.0%) and drug therapy interventions (76.1%). ERC pharmacists assessed a sizable proportion of admitted patients, with most receiving at least one pharmacist intervention.