Abstract:Objective The study aims to review the literature about strategies that can enhance the public health role of community pharmacists in the UK; and to identify main themes emerging from the literature as well as identify gaps there from. Methods Relevant literature from both the UK and overseas was identified, through electronic database searches. The search was limited to the period from January 2007 to May 2012. Key findings There are numerous opportunities for community pharmacists in public health. Followin… Show more
“…As have also been identified in previous studies, inadequate funding for public health services remains a huge challenge for community pharmacy practice. This point was also highlighted by one of the GP participants, when he raised the issue of lack of time for pharmacists,The pharmacist hasn't got time then.…”
Section: Resultssupporting
confidence: 59%
“…A UK study identifies that the main roles provided by community pharmacists in public health were in the areas of smoking cessation services; infection control and prevention; promoting cardiovascular health and blood pressure control; provision of emergency hormonal contraception; prevention and management of drug abuse, misuse and addiction; and healthy eating and lifestyle advice. These findings to a large extent confirmed the findings of other UK studies . In a recent white paper, ‘Five year forward view’, the government presented its plan to make greater use of pharmacists through its plan for ‘Multispecialty Community Providers’ (MCPs), which would become the focal point for a far wider range of care needed by their registered patients .…”
Section: Introductionsupporting
confidence: 72%
“…Data were collected through telephone interviews using Skype, using an interview guide that incorporated open‐ended questions . The interview guide was compiled from the identified themes in the review of knowledge and information as well as the findings of a survey (Phase 1 study). Interviews were recorded with the ‘HD Call Recorder for Skype’ and lasted approximately 20–30 min.…”
Section: Methodsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…As well as these, the perception of both the general public and other healthcare providers as to pharmacists’ competencies, privacy and confidentiality in pharmacies, the high dispensing workload and inadequate financial support is also disturbing for service planners . Many of these barriers have also been confirmed in other studies, many of which were carried out overseas, and as such their findings that may not be generalisable to the UK.…”
Objectives
Using qualitative methods (interviews), this study aimed to identify barriers in the public health role of UK community pharmacists.
Methods
Data were collected through telephone interviews using Skype and recorded using ‘HD Call Recorder for Skype’. The qualitative data software package NVivo (version 10) was used for storage, retrieval and analysis of data.
Key findings
This study identified a number of barriers hindering the public health role of community pharmacists in the UK. The most frequently cited barriers included: challenges as to the use of new technologies and social media; lack of awareness; pharmacists’ lack of confidence in their public health role; commercial pressure from pharmacy owners; lack of time; inadequate funding; government policy on the public health role of pharmacists; inadequate communication skills; lack of integration of UK undergraduate healthcare programmes; logistics; as well as the fact that UK pharmacists qualify as scientists rather than as clinicians.
Conclusions
Many of the barriers identified in this study have also been confirmed in other studies. A clearer policy by the government on the public health role of pharmacists, supported by Schools of Pharmacy and relevant stakeholders might be a way forward.
“…As have also been identified in previous studies, inadequate funding for public health services remains a huge challenge for community pharmacy practice. This point was also highlighted by one of the GP participants, when he raised the issue of lack of time for pharmacists,The pharmacist hasn't got time then.…”
Section: Resultssupporting
confidence: 59%
“…A UK study identifies that the main roles provided by community pharmacists in public health were in the areas of smoking cessation services; infection control and prevention; promoting cardiovascular health and blood pressure control; provision of emergency hormonal contraception; prevention and management of drug abuse, misuse and addiction; and healthy eating and lifestyle advice. These findings to a large extent confirmed the findings of other UK studies . In a recent white paper, ‘Five year forward view’, the government presented its plan to make greater use of pharmacists through its plan for ‘Multispecialty Community Providers’ (MCPs), which would become the focal point for a far wider range of care needed by their registered patients .…”
Section: Introductionsupporting
confidence: 72%
“…Data were collected through telephone interviews using Skype, using an interview guide that incorporated open‐ended questions . The interview guide was compiled from the identified themes in the review of knowledge and information as well as the findings of a survey (Phase 1 study). Interviews were recorded with the ‘HD Call Recorder for Skype’ and lasted approximately 20–30 min.…”
Section: Methodsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…As well as these, the perception of both the general public and other healthcare providers as to pharmacists’ competencies, privacy and confidentiality in pharmacies, the high dispensing workload and inadequate financial support is also disturbing for service planners . Many of these barriers have also been confirmed in other studies, many of which were carried out overseas, and as such their findings that may not be generalisable to the UK.…”
Objectives
Using qualitative methods (interviews), this study aimed to identify barriers in the public health role of UK community pharmacists.
Methods
Data were collected through telephone interviews using Skype and recorded using ‘HD Call Recorder for Skype’. The qualitative data software package NVivo (version 10) was used for storage, retrieval and analysis of data.
Key findings
This study identified a number of barriers hindering the public health role of community pharmacists in the UK. The most frequently cited barriers included: challenges as to the use of new technologies and social media; lack of awareness; pharmacists’ lack of confidence in their public health role; commercial pressure from pharmacy owners; lack of time; inadequate funding; government policy on the public health role of pharmacists; inadequate communication skills; lack of integration of UK undergraduate healthcare programmes; logistics; as well as the fact that UK pharmacists qualify as scientists rather than as clinicians.
Conclusions
Many of the barriers identified in this study have also been confirmed in other studies. A clearer policy by the government on the public health role of pharmacists, supported by Schools of Pharmacy and relevant stakeholders might be a way forward.
“…This study was approved by the programme approval panel and research ethics subcommittee of Middlesex University and took the form of a descriptive, cross‐sectional survey that generated mostly quantitative data. Items were selected and included in the questionnaire based on the identified themes in the review of literature and information, with assistance from J.O. and J.P. (content or face validity) .…”
Objectives This survey seeks the opinion of UK community pharmacists to identify barriers in the public health role of community pharmacists. Methods This study took the form of a descriptive, cross-sectional survey that generated mostly quantitative data. Questionnaires were mailed to 524 randomly selected community pharmacists from Barnet, London and its surrounding areas, Bedfordshire, Cardiff and Edinburgh. All statistical analyses including tests for significance and correlation of variables were performed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS version 19.0). Key findings A majority of the respondents identified time pressure and workload (89.7%, C.I. AE4.94); lack of patients' records (78.6%, C.I. AE6.66); insufficient funding from the government (75.2%, C.I. AE7.01); lack of understanding by healthcare providers of the training and skill sets of pharmacists (73.7%, C.I. AE7.25); and lack of understanding by the public of the training and skill sets of pharmacists (72.7%, C.I. AE7.29), as the main barriers in enhancing the public health role of community pharmacists in the UK. Male respondents were more likely to agree that 'insufficient funding' was a barrier (P = 0.006; Eta, g 2 = 0.053). There was a negative correlation between 'age of respondents' and respondents agreeing that pharmacists should develop their own expertise in public health (q = À0.185; P = 0.029). Free text comments also highlighted a number of barriers, which included, among other things, time pressure and workload, commercial pressure from employers, lack of collaboration between healthcare professionals, and inadequate funding. Conclusions Several barriers associated with the public health role of community pharmacists, mainly time pressure and workload; lack of patients' records; insufficient funding from the government; lack of understanding by healthcare providers of the training and skill sets of pharmacists; and lack of understanding by the public of the training and skill sets of pharmacists have been identified as hindering the enhancement of this role. To enable the profession to evolve fully from product-oriented services to patient-centred care, many of these barriers will need to be tackled.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
