Formal leadership perceptions about the autonomy of Pharmacy: a SWOT analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Autonomy is considered a vital principle of professionalism. In recent years, despite important advances, the Pharmacy and pharmacists' autonomy has been questioned due to conflicts that jeopardize the consolidation of this profession in the division of work in health. OBJECTIVE: to understand the construct of autonomy based on perceptions of formal leaders associated with professional organizations. METHODS: A qualitative study was conducted through interviews with key informants. The data obtained were submitted to content analysis. RESULTS: Perceptions about the autonomy in pharmaceutical practice were categorized according to strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats to this construct. CONCLUSION: The findings allowed us to understand the autonomy of pharmaceutical practice in Brazil, generate hypotheses about the future of Pharmacy, and build strategies to maintain its occupational status.

Perceptions of formal pharmacy leadership on the social role of the profession and its historical evolution: A qualitative study.

Background: In recent years, pharmaceutical professionalism has been questioned due to the social role of pharmacy, which is ambiguous in the literature. This raises questions about the purpose of the profession among pharmacists, despite the efforts of their professional organizations and formal leaders to consolidate the occupational status of the profession. Objective: To understand the social role of pharmacy in Brazil through its historical evolution based on the perceptions of formal leaders of the profession. Methods: A qualitative study was conducted between July 2020 and February 2021 with pharmacists who held leadership positions in formal and professional pharmacy organizations in Brazil. The data obtained from the interviews were submitted to content analysis. Results: A total of 17 pharmacists participated in this study. The data analyzed presented perceptions about the social role of the pharmaceutical profession in Brazil, which promotes access to health through different means. These include the manager pharmacist, who facilitates access to public health policies; the caring pharmacist, who promotes health education and the rational use of medicines; and the technologist pharmacist, who researches, develops, and promotes access to safe and cost-effective medicines. The interviewees also discussed the evolution of this social role based on influential factors such as legislation, clinical movement, pharmaceutical education, labor market, behaviors, and attitudes of pharmacists. Conclusion: In this study, pharmaceutical professionalism was conceptualized based on its social role, which should be centered on the patient. Understanding such issues is part of the evolutionary purpose of the profession in Brazil and should be encouraged in the behaviors and attitudes of pharmacists despite the challenges faced by the profession.

Teaching Strategies for Professional Identity Education in Pharmacy: A Scoping Review.

OBJECTIVES: To characterize which strategies of professional identity formation and professionalism are being used in Pharmacy. FINDINGS: We gathered 5004 articles from 5 databases with the descriptors "pharmacy" "professionalism," "professional identity" and their synonyms. The professional identity is a set of values and behaviors common among professionals. Professionalism is the moral compass of these values, used as a strategy to own social authenticity. After excluding duplicate texts, analyzing titles, abstracts, and full articles, 17 studies met the inclusion criteria and presented strategies for the formation of professional identity and professionalism in pharmacy students. We did not find studies with pharmacists. The quality of reports was assessed using 2 instruments recommended by the literature. All studies were conducted from 2007 onwards, and the United States is the country with the most publications. The identified strategies consisted of extracurricular activities, thematic courses, lectures, and counseling sessions and did not follow standards of theoretical reference, method, execution, duration, and effectiveness of evaluation. SUMMARY: The interest of Pharmacy about professional identity and professionalism has grown substantially in recent years. Teaching strategies are essential alternatives to improve professionalism, reinforce its importance, and acknowledge its heterogeneity and differences. For that, they must be in line with the aims of the profession in society. This review highlights the need to develop standardized and reproducible teaching strategies to guarantee the effectiveness of students' professional socialization during graduation, as well as to instruct professionals to deal with the changes in the profession, increasing the influence of Pharmacy in society.

Cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric evaluation of the "Modification of Hall's professionalism scale for use with pharmacists".

BACKGROUND: Professionalism is the demonstration of behaviors that guide the actions of health professionals. In Pharmacy, its implementation is possible through assessment instruments for pharmacists, such as the "Modification of Hall's Professionalism Scale for Use with Pharmacists". OBJECTIVE: To translate the "Modification of Hall's Professionalism Scale for Use with Pharmacists" into a Brazilian Portuguese version and evaluate its psychometric properties for pharmacists. METHOD: The methodological process of this study took place in three stages: translation and cross-cultural adaptation of the instrument original version into a Brazilian Portuguese version; validation of the scale content through consensus among geographically distinct experts and, finally; examination of the scale psychometric measurement properties through a convenience sample of 600 Brazilian pharmacists. At this stage, construct validity was verified using Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and reliability was examined by calculating the composite reliability. RESULTS: The adapted instrument to a Brazilian Portuguese version demonstrated content validity with coefficients considered acceptable, above 0.8. The EFA demonstrated a structure supported by six factors and 39 items. The H index suggested high stability for all factors as well as composite reliability. CONCLUSION: The Brazilian Portuguese version of the instrument presented appropriate content validity coefficients and psychometric properties. This measure may be useful for future studies on professionalism regarding teaching strategies and assessment of this construct among pharmacists.

ASSOCIATED FACTORS THE RETENTION AND INTENTIONALITY OF EVASION IN PHARMACY COURSES OF A PUBLIC UNIVERSITY OF NORTHEASTERN BRAZIL / FATORES ASSOCIADOS A RETENÇÃO E INTENCIONALIDADE DE EVASÃO NOS CURSOS DE FARMÁCIA DE UMA UNIVERSIDADE PÚBLICA DO NORDESTE BRASILEIRO

The study aimed to evaluate possible factors associated with retention and intentionality of avoidance of the Pharmacy course of a Public University of the Northeast. This is a cross-sectional study conducted between July and December 2019 with students from the two undergraduate courses in Pharmacy, from the Federal University of Sergipe. For data collection, an instrument was used that included: 1) Sociodemographic data and; 2) Factors related to the intentionality of evasion, questions about locking, and failure in modules/disciplines. The study participated in 335 students, 132 from the Lagarto campus and 203 students from São Cristóvão. Of these, 69.30% (n=232) were women, the majority (81.20%) aged between 18 and 24 years, 60.90% (n=204) declared themselves brown, 96.70% were single and 5.10% (n= 17) had children. Regarding failure and intentionality of evasion, 176 (52.50%) stated that they had already failed and 62,10% (n=208) had the intention to drop out of the course. Among the factors that have an impact on the intentionality of the evasion was: "schedule of the disciplines offered", "curriculum matrix", "teaching methodology", "form of evaluation", "relationship between student and teacher/coordinator", "interpersonal relationships", "student assistance", "low remuneration of the professional", "financial difficulties", "lack of study skills", "difficulties of adaptation to the university", "disenchantment or demotivation with the course", "learning difficulties, translated into disapproval and low frequency", "inadaptation with the course" and "mental health problem". The results reinforce the need for strategies that support students during graduation, in order to reduce the impact of retention and dropout in higher education.

El estudio tenía como objetivo evaluar posibles factores asociados con la retención e intencionalidad de la evasión del curso de Farmacia de una Universidad Pública del Noreste. Estudio transversal realizado entre julio y diciembre de 2019 con estudiantes de los dos cursos de Farmacia de la Universidad Federal de Sergipe. Se recopilaron los siguientes datos: 1) datos sociodemográficos; 2) Factores relacionados con la intencionalidad de la evasión, preguntas sobre bloqueo y retención en módulos/disciplinas. Participó del estudio 335 estudiantes, 132 del campus de Lagarto y 203 de São Cristóvão. De ellos,  69,30% (n=232) eran mujeres, la mayoría (81,20%) entre 18 y 24 años, 60,90% (n=204) se declararon pardas, 96,70% eran solteros y 5,10% (n=17) tenían hijos. En cuanto al retención y la intencionalidad de la evasión, 176 (52,50%) afirmaron que ya habían reprobado y 62,10% (n=208) tenían la intención de evasión. Se destacaron los siguientes factores de intencionalidad de la evasión: "programa de las disciplinas ofrecidas", "matriz curricular", "metodología de enseñanza", "forma de evaluación", "relación entre estudiante y profesor/coordinador", "relaciones interpersonales", "asistencia al estudiante", "baja remuneración del profesional", "dificultades financieras", "falta de habilidades de estudio", "dificultades de adaptación a la universidad", "desencanto o desmotivación con el curso", "dificultades de aprendizaje, traducidas en desaprobación y baja frecuencia", "inadaptación con el curso" y "problema de salud mental". Los resultados refuerzan la necesidad de estrategias que apoyen a los estudiantes durante la graduación, con el fin de reducir el impacto en la retención escolar y la deserción escolar en la educación superior.

O estudo objetivou avaliar possíveis fatores associados à retenção e à intencionalidade de evasão do curso de Farmácia de uma Universidade Pública do Nordeste. Trata-se de um estudo transversal realizado entre julho a dezembro de 2019 com estudantes dos dois cursos de graduação em Farmácia, da Universidade Federal de Sergipe. Para a coleta de dados utilizou-se um instrumento que contemplava: 1) Dados Sociodemográficos e; 2) Fatores ligados à intencionalidade de evasão questões, sobre trancamento e reprovação em módulos / disciplinas. Participaram da pesquisa 335 estudantes, sendo 132 do campus Lagarto e 203 estudantes de São Cristóvão.Destes, 69,30% (n = 232) eram mulheres, a maioria (81,20%) apresentava idade entre 18 e 24 anos, 60,90% (n = 204) se autodeclaram pardos, 96,70% eram solteiros e 5,10% (n = 17) possuíam filhos. Quanto a reprovação e intencionalidade de evasão, 176 (52,50%) afirmaram já ter reprovado e 62,10% (n = 208) a intenção de desistir do curso.Entre os fatores que impactam na intencionalidade da evasão destacou-se: "horário das disciplinas ofertadas", "matriz curricular", "metodologia de ensino", "forma de avaliação", "relação entre aluno e professor / coordenador", "relações interpessoais "," Assistência aos alunos "," baixa renda do profissional "," dificuldades financeiras "," falta de habilidades de estudo "," dificuldade de adaptação à universidade "," desencanto ou desmotivação com o curso "," dificuldades de aprendizagem, traduzidas em reprovação e baixa frequência "," inadaptação com o curso "e" problema de saúde mental ". Os resultados reforçam a necessidade de aplicar que subsidiem os estudantes durante a graduação,