Closing the knowledge gap in Malaysian pharmacists: A virtual Allergic Rhinitis Boot Camp initiative

Abstract

Background: In primary care, general practitioners (GPs) and pharmacists are at the frontline to identify, classify and manage patients suffering from allergic rhinitis (AR). The Allergic Rhinitis and its impact on Asthma (ARIA) guidelines aid clinicians in disease management by providing evidence-based recommendations. A recently published ASEAN primary care survey demonstrated that the awareness of ARIA guidelines was high among GPs but notably lower in pharmacists. Hence, this study seeks to evaluate the effectiveness of a Boot Camp education initiative in bridging the unmet needs in pharmacist awareness and education.Methods: The boot camp was organised as a virtual event. The participants answered the same questionnaire before (pre-assessment) and immediately after (post-assessment) the boot camp session. Statistical analysis was performed on the data paired between the pre- and post- assessments using SPSS v. 25.0 software.Results: The boot camp survey results showed that second-generation oral antihistamines and allergen avoidance are the most preferred options for AR treatment in pharmacy practice, irrespective of the disease severity. In both pre- and post-assessments, efficacy was ranked as the most important factor considered for choosing an antihistamine and which affects patient adherence. With the boot camp initiative, there was a statistically significant increase in awareness about the patient profiling tool (from 31.6% to 88.2%) and ARIA guidelines (from 40.4% to 91.2%) among the pharmacists (p<0.05). The proportion of pharmacists who were able to identify, classify and refer AR patients was significantly increased in post-assessment (p<0.05). Post the boot camp, among the proportion of pharmacists (91.2%) who were already aware of ARIA, a high percentage of them further agreed that ARIA guidelines were useful in identifying and treating patients with AR, as well as classifying AR, respectively (97.6%, 95.2%, and 93.5%).Conclusions: Based on improvements in knowledge and understanding of disease management post assessment, the Allergic Rhinitis Boot Camp initiative is effective and relevant to pharmacy practice. Outreach programs like this reiterate the emphasis on patient compliance and importance of utilizing ARIA guidelines in pharmacy practice that facilitates better management of AR in primary care.

Development and validation of a pharmacist-led education model in allergic rhinitis management: a multi-phase study

“…The panellists might misunderstand that the pharmacists would change the regimes by following the stepwise pharmacological treatment according to the disease severity. The R2 rating explained that the inclusion was only for the knowledge of practising pharmacists, with the concern that most pharmacists had inadequate awareness of ARIA guidelines (40.4%) [ 48 ]. The revised version assuring the panellist that there is no shift of the role of physicians to pharmacists in the treatment decision.…”

Reshaping the Management of Allergic Rhinitis in Primary Care: Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…However, due to the dynamic nature of AR management, interaction with healthcare providers is essential, particularly GPs and pharmacists [ 9 , 10 ]. Recognition of the disease, appropriate medication selection, exact treatment management, review of the effectiveness of medications, and offering counseling and referral where needed are some of the care pathways requiring interaction with primary care providers [ 54 , 55 ]. Despite the use of medications, patients with AR typically present to primary care with symptoms that are not well-controlled [ 56 ].…”

“…The COVID-19 pandemic has imposed significant challenges on primary care, where factors such as the need to protect oneself from exposure and contracting infection from others and the obligation to maintain a standard of healthcare obfuscated the handling and management of upper respiratory disorders [ 57 , 59 ]. As COVID-19 joins the long list of other respiratory conditions seen in the primary care setting, it is now more imperative than ever that pharmacists and GPs must be able to identify their symptoms and differentiate the upper respiratory disease [ 54 , 55 ]. Concurrently, appropriate guidance and treatment selection must be provided to help improve patient outcomes.…”

The management of allergic rhinitis by pharmacists in public services: a proposed PhaRmacISt-led Education Model (AR-PRISE)

“…A lack of knowledge of ARIA among pharmacists is observed as evidenced by insufficient counselling and treatment selection by pharmacists in allergic rhinitis management [ 12 ]. In a recent study, it was found that 40.4% of Malaysian pharmacists have inadequate awareness of the ARIA guidelines [ 13 ].…”