The use of a written assessment checklist for the provision of emergency contraception via community pharmacies: a simulated patient study

Abstract

BackgroundThe Pharmaceutical Society of Australia recommends use of a written assessment checklist prior to supply of emergency contraception by pharmacists.ObjectiveThe aim of this research was to determine the prevalence of use of a written assessment checklist by community pharmacists and secondly, to ascertain the effect of the checklist on appropriate assessment and supply.MethodsThree female simulated patients visited 100 randomly selected pharmacies requesting supply of ‘the morning after pill’. Information provided when assessed by the pharmacist was that she had missed one inactive pill of her regular hormonal contraception. The amount of assessment provided and the appropriateness of supply were used as comparative outcome measures.ResultsEighty-three pharmacies used a written assessment checklist. Twenty-four of the pharmacies visited provided the appropriate outcome of non-supply. Pharmacies that used a written assessment checklist provided a greater quantity and consistency of assessment (11.3 ±2.5 v. 6.5 ±3.8 questions, p<0.0001) but this did not result in an improved frequency of an appropriate outcome (20%, n=16 v. 23%, n=3).ConclusionsWhile a written patient assessment checklist improved the quantity and consistency of patient assessment, it did not improve the advice provided by community pharmacies when handling requests for emergency contraception.

Evaluating the practice of Iranian community pharmacists regarding oral contraceptive pills using simulated patients

“…Furthermore, Schneider et al investigated the effects of using a written assessment checklist by pharmacists on provision of emergency contraceptive pills in a simulated patient study in 2013. They concluded using the checklist increased the number of assessment questions but did not improve the appropriate outcome in regard to medication supply 30. Also, in United Kingdom, the clinical and communication skills of 40 pharmacists regarding emergency hormonal contraception (EHC) supply were investigated.…”

“…Of the other efforts made in this respect can be learning activities such as using standardized patients, interdisciplinary methods, and using Internet or computer technology, and holding seminars for pharmacy students 39. Finally, designing guidelines or checklists in regard to OTC use of OCPs to determine which types of questions should be asked by pharmacists could be helpful 20,30. The irrelevant types or inadequate information gathered by pharmacists might lead to provision of inappropriate advice 20,26…”

Can we document the practice of dispensing? A systematic review

“…After reading the abstracts, 336 articles were preselected for the evaluation of full text. At the end of the article selection process, 26 articles met the specific inclusion criteria. Figure illustrates the progressive selection of the studies used for this review.…”

“…Twenty studies showed the effects of documentation in the working process of dispensing practice and, of these, 23 studies included statistical evidence (Table ). According to the methodological analysis of the studies, no article fully met the STROBE and CONSORT criteria.…”

“…All selected studies were published after 1990. Of the 26 studies, 14 studies 27,[30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42] were implementation/evaluation of an instrument of documentation during research, nine studies [43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50][51] documented data for research, and only three studies [52][53][54] addressed documentation as part of the working process in dispensing practice.…”