Reproductive Health Services: Attitudes and Practice of Japanese Community Pharmacists

Abstract

The provision of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services is an important part of a community pharmacist’s role in many countries. However, such services are not traditionally provided by pharmacists in Japan. We surveyed the practice and attitudes regarding the provision of SRH services among Japanese community pharmacists with a focus on reproductive health (RH) topics. The participants were asked about the provision of RH services, attitudes toward their role as SRH providers, and self-reported confidence in providing education to patients on RH topics. We obtained 534 effective responses. About half of the participants reported providing RH services, and only 21% were involved in dispensing emergency contraception pills. Although the proportion of pharmacists providing education on these topics was considerably lower, about 80% recognized the importance of their role as SRH advisors. Confidence in providing patient education about RH topics depended on their experience in providing such services. Most participants were interested in additional SRH training (80%). Our results suggest that training programs could help to expand Japanese community pharmacists’ roles as SRH providers and increase their confidence in the education of patients. This study provides useful insights to expand pharmacists’ roles in Japan as providers of comprehensive SRH services.

Community Pharmacists’ Experiences and Attitudes towards the Provision of Sexual and Reproductive Health Services: An International Survey

“…The focus of Japanese participants was emergency contraception, one of the main SRH discussion topics on the public agenda in Japan [30]. It is not surprising that Japanese pharmacists are interested in learning more about emergency contraception as their responsibilities have changed recently and will continue to change [52]. Alberta participants' primary preference was STBBI treatment.…”

“…The development and content of the survey have been described previously [52,53]. The instrument was developed by the research team.…”

“…The survey distributed in Alberta covered additional topics reflecting the scope of practice in the region, such as the administration of injections and prescribing. Findings related to the expanded scope of practice in Alberta [53] and attitudes and practices of Japanese pharmacists regarding reproductive health services [52] have been previously published.…”

An Assessment of Community Pharmacists’ Competence and Involvement in Adolescent Sexuality Education and Reproductive Health Services

“…Increasing pharmacists' knowledge and skills in adolescent issues through focused training may reduce barriers and enhance pharmacist's self -efficacy in the provision of adolescent SERH services 33,44 . Other strategies to overcome barriers that have proved effective in other countries include equipping community pharmacies with SERH skills through structured training programs, developing up to date resources for pharmacists, clearly visible signage at pharmacies to improve awareness of service availability and provision of needed support and technical assistance [45][46][47] . There is a need to explore the full range of SERH services offered by community pharmacists and the impact of religious objection, policy framework and legal authorization on service delivery.…”