Engaging community pharmacists in quality improvement (QI): a qualitative case study of a partnership between a Higher Education Institute and Local Pharmaceutical Committees.

BACKGROUND: Quality improvement (QI) involves the use of systematic tools and methods to improve the quality of care and outcomes for patients. However, awareness and application of QI among healthcare professionals is poor and new strategies are needed to engage them in this area. OBJECTIVES: This study describes an innovative collaboration between one Higher Educational Institute (HEI) and Local Pharmaceutical Committees (LPCs) to develop a postgraduate QI module aimed to upskill community pharmacists in QI methods. The study explores pharmacist engagement with the learning and investigates the impact on their practice. METHODS: Details of the HEI-LPCs collaboration and communication with pharmacist were recorded. Focus groups were held with community pharmacists who enrolled onto the module to explore their motivation for undertaking the learning, how their knowledge of QI had changed and how they applied this learning in practice. A constructivist qualitative methodology was used to analyse the data. RESULTS: The study found that a HEI-LPC partnership was feasible in developing and delivering the QI module. Fifteen pharmacists enrolled and following its completion, eight took part in one of two focus groups. Pharmacists reported a desire to extend and acquire new skills. The HEI-LPC partnership signalled a vote of confidence that gave pharmacists reassurance to sign up for the training. Some found returning to academia challenging and reported a lack of time and organisational support. Despite this, pharmacists demonstrated an enhanced understanding of QI, were more analytical in their day-to-day problem-solving and viewed the learning as having a positive impact on their team's organisational culture with potential to improve service quality for patients. CONCLUSIONS: With the increased adoption of new pharmacist's roles and recent changes to governance associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, a HEI-LPC collaborative approach could upskill pharmacists and help them acquire skills to accommodate new working practices.

Quality improvement in community pharmacy: a qualitative investigation of the impact of a postgraduate quality improvement educational module on pharmacists understanding and practice.

OBJECTIVE: Quality improvement (QI) is increasingly featuring in the United Kingdom (UK) National Health Service (NHS) agenda to promote safety, effectiveness and patient experience. However, the use of QI techniques by healthcare professionals appears limited and constrained with only isolated examples of good practice. This study explores QI within the pharmacy context. Focusing on the community pharmacy 'Healthy Living Pharmacy scheme', this study aims to explore changes in QI understanding resulting from a postgraduate QI educational intervention. METHODS: Four focus groups were held involving 13 community pharmacists enrolled onto a newly developed postgraduate QI educational module. Two focus groups were held before and two after the module's completion. Knowledge of QI and practical applications following the learning was explored. KEY FINDINGS: Three themes emerged: pharmacists' motivation for learning about QI, conceptual understanding and translation into practice. Pharmacists expressed positive views about learning new skills but expressed logistical concerns about how they would accommodate the extra learning. Prior knowledge of QI was found to be lacking and its application in practice ineffectual. Following completion of the QI module, significant improvements in comprehension and application were seen. Pharmacists considered it too soon to make an assessment on patient outcomes as their improvements required time to effectively embed changes in practice. CONCLUSIONS: Quality improvement forms an important part of the NHS quality and safety agenda; however, community pharmacists may not currently have adequate knowledge of QI principles. The postgraduate educational intervention showed promising results in pharmacist's knowledge, organisational culture and application in practice.