Perspectives on the role of the community pharmacist in the provision of healthcare to people with intellectual disabilities: exploration of the barriers and solutions

Abstract

Objective The objective of this study was twofold: to gain an understanding of the perceptions of individual pharmacists in relation to their role in the provision of healthcare for people with intellectual disabilities, and to identify barriers impacting on successful implementation of this role; secondly to explore strategies and solutions for improving pharmacists' involvement in the delivery of healthcare to this group. Setting A purposeful sample of 10 community pharmacists, located in the Loddon Mallee Region, north central rural Victoria, Australia. Method A descriptive qualitative design was adopted in this study. Data collection was via face‐to‐face, one‐to‐one, semi‐structured interviews. The data were analysed thematically via a three‐stage coding process: open, axial and selective coding. Key findings The study highlighted factors such as time resources; education, training, and experience in the field of intellectual disabilities; inadequate interprofessional communication; and the client's communication abilities and capacity to understand to be the most significant barriers to the provision of healthcare to people with intellectual disabilities, for this sample of community pharmacists. Suggested solutions to these barriers included emphasising the need for education and training, and increased staff recruitment. Community pharmacists emphasised the need for adequate collaboration with other health professionals, and the importance of communication with people with intellectual disabilities and their carers. Conclusion The research study highlighted a significant number of barriers perceived by the sample of community pharmacists, and proposed solutions to overcome these barriers in order to better assist community pharmacists in providing healthcare to people with intellectual disabilities.

Identifying Training Needs for Mainstream Healthcare Professionals, to Prepare Them for Working with Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities: A Systematic Review

“…Thematic analysis was described by Di Blasi et al . () as coding full interview transcriptions for emerging themes, with coding occurring in three stages; open, axial and selective coding.…”

“…Two studies utilised different methods; Di Blasi et al . () who conducted a semi‐structured interview and Sowney & Barr () who conducted focus groups. The possible impact of the implementation of all methods on the results gained will be explored in the discussion section of this review.…”

“…, ; Di Blasi et al . ; Sowney & Barr ; Cartlidge & Read ). This was a common training need identified across GPs, palliative care professionals, community pharmacists, primary care practice nurses and nurses working in Accident and Emergency (A&E).…”

“Tell me what they do to my body”: A survey to find out what information people with learning disabilities want with their medications

“…We argue that pharmacy consultations should be in-depth and tailored to the person's communication style and ability (Dickinson et al, 2013). Furthermore, GPs, nurses and pharmacists should work together to share information about patients' requirements and provide person-centred care (Blasi, Kendall, & Spark, 2006). Verbal explanations with no difficult words 9 "Any info in a verbal equivalent of easy-read, plain English would help.…”

Medication reviews for people with developmental disability - a call to action!

“…In order to determine effective pharmacotherapeutic choices, pharmacists require insight and skills to effectively communicate with, and counsel people with intellectual disability; Australian pharmacists may not possess these skills. 6 To the author's knowledge, there is no training in this area for pharmacists in Australia. A brief, communication-skills training session has been shown to positively impact the attitudes of undergraduate medical students in interacting with people with developmental disabilities.…”