As roles and services advance, pharmacists are increasingly encountering processes, such as credentialing and privileging, that are widely used by other health care professionals and are critical to the delivery of patient care services by pharmacists.

Credentialing is a process performed by organizations (e.g., employers, payers, networks) to assess and confirm the qualifications of health care providers (e.g., physicians, nurse practitioners, pharmacists). Credentialing requires providers to present documentation of their professional credentials, including education (e.g., academic degrees), licensure, training (e.g., advanced training), expertise (e.g., certifications), malpractice coverage, and any infractions, sanctions, or reports of malpractice for review and evaluation. Privileging is a similar but separate process that grants permission to a pharmacist (or other health care professional) to provide specific services within an organization. Privileging processes are often conducted by a committee of health care providers based on assessments of health care practitioner competencies, capabilities, and credentials.

APhA’s report on Credentialing in the Pharmacy Profession: An Overview of the Current Environment will help pharmacists better understand these processes and will support the transformation of their roles to better meet patients’ needs.

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