An information behaviour investigation of the community pharmacists in Greece for developing library and information services

Abstract

Background and objectives: Community pharmacists require a constant provision of high quality information for updating their knowledge and improving their practices and skills. The development of library and information services for the pharmacists in a meaningful way should take into consideration their information behaviour and needs. This study is an investigation of the information behaviour of community pharmacists in Greece, as well as their perceptions regarding the contribution of library and information services in their future professional development. This is the only empirical investigation which has been made available regarding the information behaviour of the community pharmacists in Greece. Methods: An empirical investigation has been conducted between March and April of 2008 through the development and the distribution of a semi-structured questionnaire. The sample of the respondents consists of 92 community pharmacists from 22 pharmacy associations in Greece. Results: The community pharmacists have access to the Internet, with limited access to specialized information resources, and they are increasingly utilizing information services in their everyday practices. The pharmaceutical associations (national and local) could play a significant role as information providers and specialized hybrid libraries and information services are required in order to satisfy the current information needs of the community pharmacists. Conclusions: Meaningful library and information services depend on setting specifications relevant to the community pharmacists' information behaviour. Indeed, in the near future, structured information services may come to rescue the role of the community pharmacists and empower their irreplaceable position in serving the local communities.

An investigation into the information-seeking behaviour of professionals, working within the pharmaceutical manufacturing sector in Ireland

“…In relation to other enablers training in available information resources , a dequate time to share information and o rganisational structure facilitates sharing were also noted by the participants. These findings are in par with previous research that has similarly identified lack of time of pharmacists as a barrier to accessing information (Kostagiolas et al ., 2010). If we consider these results in conjunction with the earlier information sources results, on the basis of the frequency of using forums/meetings/seminars/working groups as well as c orporate network communities , where, overall below average values were obtained, perhaps, the provision of increased opportunities for information sharing through forums, seminars, meetings and working groups could further enhance information sharing, through fostering communities of practice where individuals to act “as resources to each other, exchanging information, making sense of situations, sharing new tricks and new ideas” (Wenger, 1998, p. 47).…”

The role of pharmacists in cardiovascular disease prevention: Qualitative studies from the United Kingdom and Greece

“…This was echoed in a survey-based study conducted by Kostagiolas et al . [29] in Greece revealing that pharmacists perceived a significant contribution of their role to dealing with health-care prevention programs.…”

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“…However, the variation in content, speakers, sponsors, and level of topics limit their usefulness and less reliable compared to other sources of information 2, 9-11 . Community pharmacists are efficiently looked upon to provide accurate, up to-date, reliable, unbiased or two sided information in the fast-paced environment of community pharmacy. Pharmacists therefore need access to comprehensive information sources on medication 12 . Generally, there are three categories of drug information 2 .…”