Employing the nominal group technique to explore the views of pharmacists, pharmacy assistants and women on community pharmacy weight management services and educational resources.

OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were to investigate how pharmacists, pharmacy assistants and women feel about community pharmacy involvement in weight management, and to identify what pharmacists, pharmacy assistants and women want in weight management educational resources. METHODS: Three homogenous and one heterogeneous nominal group (NG) sessions of up to 120-min duration were conducted with nine women, ten pharmacists and eight pharmacy assistants. The NG technique was used to conduct each session to determine the most important issues that should be considered surrounding community pharmacy weight management services and development of any educational resources. The heterogeneous NG session was used to finalise what women, pharmacists and pharmacy assistants want in educational resources. KEY FINDINGS: Overall, pharmacists, pharmacy assistants and women believe that pharmacy staff have an important role in the management of overweight and obesity because of their accessibility, trust and the availability of products in pharmacy. Regarding the most suitable healthcare professional(s) to treat overweight and obesity, the majority of participants believed that no one member of the healthcare team was most suitable and that overweight and obesity needs to be treated by a multidisciplinary team. The importance of having weight management educational resources for pharmacy staff and women that come from trustworthy resources without financial gain or commercialisation was also emphasised. CONCLUSION: Pharmacists, pharmacy assistants and women feel that community pharmacies have a definite role to play in weight management. Pharmacy-specific weight management educational resources that are readily available to pharmacy staff and women are highly desirable.

A national mailed survey exploring weight management services across Australian community pharmacies.

This study investigated pharmacists' and pharmacy assistants' current weight management recommendations to consumers across Australian community pharmacies using a mailed questionnaire. Two questionnaires were developed, one for pharmacists and one for pharmacy assistants, each divided into five sections. One pharmacist and pharmacy assistant questionnaire were mailed in November 2011 to a systematic sample of 3000 pharmacies across Australia for one pharmacist and pharmacy assistant each to complete. A total of 537 pharmacist and 403 pharmacy assistant responses, from 880 different pharmacies, were received. Overall 94.5% (n = 832/880) of associated pharmacies stocked weight loss products and 48.2% (n = 424/880) offered a weight management program. Both pharmacists and pharmacy assistants felt that the development of pharmacy-specific educational resources and additional training would help improve their ability to provide weight management services. Australian pharmacists and pharmacy assistants currently appear to be providing weight management services to consumers; however, not all their recommendations are evidence based. The need for additional training for pharmacy staff in areas identified as lacking and the development of pharmacy weight management educational resources needs to be addressed.

Exploring weight management recommendations across Australian community pharmacies using case vignettes.

With the increase in the overweight and obese population, it is critical that pharmacy staff are able to provide weight management advice to women at different stages of their life. This study utilized case vignettes to identify pharmacists' and pharmacy assistants' current weight management recommendations to women of different ages, life stages and co-morbidities. A total of 537 pharmacist and 403 pharmacy assistant responses were received. In the case of the pre-pregnancy vignette, only 57% (46/80) of pharmacy assistants were able to correctly identify a woman's weight category based on her body mass index, which was significantly fewer than 86% (86/108) of pharmacists (P < 0.001). In the pregnancy vignette, both pharmacists and pharmacy assistants were able to identify the risks of using a herbal weight loss medication in pregnancy. The need for a 'multi-disciplinary team approach' was seen in the menopause case vignette with pharmacists, highlighting the need for the involvement of other health care professionals for successful weight loss outcomes. Australian pharmacists and pharmacy assistants are currently providing weight management services to their consumers, however, not all of their recommendations are evidence-based. There is a need for pharmacy weight management educational resources to be developed and implemented across community pharmacies.

Comparing women pharmacy consumers' experiences with weight loss treatment in Victoria and Nottingham: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: There has been a recent increase in weight management services available in pharmacies across Australia and England. The aim of this study was to determine the following between women in Victoria and Nottingham: similarities and differences of what weight management options are preferred by women pharmacy consumers; how they feel about pharmacists providing advice in this area; and what they desire in a weight management program. METHOD: Women pharmacy consumers were randomly approached by a researcher in community pharmacies in Victoria and Nottingham and asked to complete a questionnaire regarding their own weight management experiences. The questionnaire was self-completed or researcher-administered and was comprised of four main sections that focused on the participant's general health, previous weight loss experiences, their ideal weight management program and their demographics. Data was entered in SPSS 19 and logistic regression was used to identify any differences in weight loss experiences between women. RESULTS: The participant rates were high: 86% (n = 395/460) in Victoria and 98% in Nottingham (n = 215/220). Overall, women in Victoria and Nottingham were similar with comparable demographics. Approximately 50% (250/507) of women were in the overweight or obese body mass index category, with over 70% (n = 436/610) of women having attempted to lose weight in the past. The majority of women (n = 334/436) felt comfortable receiving advice from pharmacists. In the logistic regression analysis women in Nottingham were found to be significantly less likely to have utilised a pharmacy weight management program in the last five years (OR: 0.23 CI: 0.08, 0.63) and were significantly less likely to want an ideal weight management program located in a pharmacy (OR: 0.49 CI: 0.30, 0.82) compared to women in Victoria. No significant associations between location and feeling comfortable with a pharmacist advising on weight loss or wanting a pharmacist in an ideal weight management program were seen. CONCLUSION: Results from this study have provided information on possible ideal pharmacy weight management programs in both Victoria and Nottingham. Although differences were seen between the two populations, similarities between ideal weight management programs and comfort level with pharmacist interaction were noted.

Patient engagement strategies used for hypertension and their influence on self-management attributes.

BACKGROUND: Several effective methods to facilitate patient self-management of hypertension are available in primary care. These include direct support from community pharmacists and general practice, and the use of home blood pressure (BP) monitoring. The aim of this study is to establish the prevalence of use of key strategies and to determine their independent relationship with patient self-management attributes. METHODS: A survey of patients with treated hypertension was undertaken in 27 community pharmacies. This established recent use of BP monitoring and advice from health professionals. Patient awareness of BP and targets, appropriateness of BP targets and adherence to anti-hypertensive medications were assessed as indicative self-management outcomes. Predictors of outcomes were determined using binary logistic regression. RESULTS: Overall, 215 surveys were returned. Two-thirds of patients were aged >65 years, and 45% had conditions warranting tighter BP control (<130/80 mmHg). Almost all patients reported monitoring of their BP in the previous year and 63% could report their most recent BP reading. Just 36% reported knowing a target BP, and 78% of reported targets were within guidelines recommendations. One-fifth (22%) monitored their own BP, and 15% reported non-adherence to medication. Doctors provided the large majority of professional advice. Self-monitoring or documentation of BP readings was independently associated with increased likelihood of BP and target BP being known. CONCLUSIONS: Regular monitoring of BP does not automatically translate to professional advice. Increased uptake of patient self-monitoring should be promoted as a means of enabling self-management.

Exploring factors that contribute to dose administration aid incidents and identifying quality improvement strategies: the views of pharmacy and nursing staff.

BACKGROUND: Dose administration aids (DAAs) organise medicines that have been repacked according to the day of the week and time of the day in which they must be taken. In Australia, DAAs are commonly prepared by pharmacy staff for residential aged care facility (RACF) medicine administration. Although the limited available literature indicates that DAA incidents of inaccurate or unsuitable medicine repacking do occur, there is a paucity of qualitative research identifying quality improvement strategies for this service. OBJECTIVES: This study aims to investigate the perceived contributing factors to DAA incidents and strategies for quality improvement in RACFs and pharmacies. METHODS: Health professional perceptions were drawn from three structured focus groups, including six pharmacists, five nurses, a pharmacy technician and a personal care worker. Participants were involved in the preparation, supply or use of DAAs at pharmacies or RACFs that were involved in a previous DAA audit. Transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis. KEY FINDINGS: Four major themes were identified as contributing to DAA incidents, with quality improvement strategies aligned to those same four themes: communication, knowledge and awareness, medicine handling and attitude. Strategies included improving interprofessional communication and addressing the limitations associated with RACF medicine records; targeting medicine knowledge gaps and increasing awareness of DAA incidents; encouraging greater care when preparing and checking DAAs; and fostering a team mentality among members of the aged care team. CONCLUSIONS: Recommendations include using current findings to develop multidisciplinary quality improvement initiatives to prevent DAA incidents and to improve the quality of this pharmacy medicine supply service.

Can a redesign of emergency pharmacist roles improve medication management? A prospective study in three Australian hospitals.

BACKGROUND: Emergency departments (EDs) face increasing service demands and the imposition of treatment targets which has led to continual process redesign and changes in staff skill mix and functions. OBJECTIVE: To identify extended ED pharmacist roles that could improve medication management and to implement and evaluate one such role change. METHODS: A focus group of clinicians sought to redesign processes around ED medication management. Preparation of medication charts for patients admitted from ED was selected. Baseline data were obtained to define elements of existing medication charting processes. Suitably trained ED pharmacists' trialled the effectiveness of making therapeutic suggestions on a medication chart 'sticker' or by direct 'consultation' with medical staff. At the conclusion of the study focus groups at each site evaluated clinical staff perceptions of the change. RESULTS: Focus group participants thought that ED pharmacists could undertake extended roles in analgesia, nausea control, antibiotic cover, addiction management and preparation of medication charts for admitted patients. In the pre-intervention audit (n = 140), 74% required at least one intervention by the ward pharmacists to address medication discrepancies. Ward pharmacists detected 292 medication discrepancies (median 1, IQR 0-3). In the 'sticker' intervention the ED pharmacist made 84 therapeutic suggestions of which 66 (78.6%) were accepted by medical staff. In the 'consultation' intervention 230 therapeutic suggestions were made of which 219 (95.2%) were accepted. The qualitative evaluation found that pharmacist-prepared medication charts within the processes established were deemed safe, timely, accurate, complete and legible. CONCLUSION: Support exists for ED pharmacists to expand their medication-related roles. ED pharmacists can safely prepare medication charts in a timely fashion and their therapeutic suggestions within a 'consultative' framework are more beneficial than written advice. However, issues relating to resourcing, hours of service, service focus, statutory restrictions and training support for extended roles require resolution.

Women pharmacy consumers' experiences with weight loss treatment across Victoria, Australia.

BACKGROUND: Given the role of pharmacy in weight management is increasing, anecdotally weight loss treatments are consumed by more women than men, and there are some causes of overweight and obesity specific to women, it is important that pharmacists provide evidence-based services that consider women's needs as a basis for a future population based approach. OBJECTIVES: To determine what weight management options are preferred by women pharmacy consumers, how they feel about pharmacists providing advice in this area, and what they desire in a weight management program. METHODS: A random sample of women pharmacy consumers were asked to complete a questionnaire in randomly selected pharmacies across Victoria. Questionnaires were self-completed or with assistance from the researcher. Logistic regression analysis was used to determine any significant associations between demographic characteristics and previous weight loss attempts, pharmacy specific outcomes and what women want in their ideal weight management program. SETTING: Community pharmacies across Victoria, Australia. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: The views and opinions of women pharmacy consumers across Victoria regarding pharmacy involvement in weight management and currently available weight management products and/or programs. RESULTS: The response rate was high: 86 % (395/460). Approximately 48 % (153/319) of women were in the overweight, obese or severely obese body mass index category (BMI). 71.1 % (281/395) of women had attempted to lose weight in the past. Women in the overweight BMI category were 2.6 times more likely to have attempted to lose weight (95 % CI 1.4, 4.9), and women in the obese BMI category were 10.6 times more likely to have attempted to lose weight (95 % CI 4.1, 27.7) compared to the women with a BMI <25 kg/m(2). Approximately 80 % (230/281) of women felt comfortable receiving advice from pharmacists with 42 % (117/281) wanting a pharmacist in their ideal weight management program and 42 % (118/281) wanting their program to be delivered in a pharmacy. CONCLUSIONS: Women pharmacy consumers used a range of weight management approaches and had mainly positive views about the involvement of pharmacists in their ideal weight management program.

Gaps in continuity of medication management during the transition from hospital to residential care: an observational study (MedGap Study).

AIM: To assess continuity of medication management during transition from hospital to residential care facilities (RCFs). METHOD: Telephone interviews with RCF staff were performed 24 hours after patient transfer to determine the proportion of patients with: missed or significantly delayed doses; RCF medication chart not written/updated in time for the first dose; suitably packed medications not available for the first dose; and RCF medication chart written/updated by a locum doctor. Retrospective audit was used to identify discharge summary discrepancies. RESULTS: Seventy-five doses for 37/202 (18.3%) patients were missed or significantly delayed in the 24 hours after discharge. One hundred and twenty-five (61.9%) patients did not have their medication chart written/updated and 77 (38.1%) did not have suitably packed medications available for the first dose. Locum doctors wrote RCF medication charts for 66 (32.7%) patients. One hundred and ninety-seven of 392 (50.3%) changes to regularly scheduled medications were communicated. CONCLUSIONS: Strategies are needed to address gaps in the continuity of medication management.

Impact of a pharmacist-prepared interim residential care medication administration chart on gaps in continuity of medication management after discharge from hospital to residential care: a prospective pre- and post-intervention study (MedGap Study).

OBJECTIVES: To test the impact of a hospital pharmacist-prepared interim residential care medication administration chart (IRCMAC) on medication administration errors and use of locum medical services after discharge from hospital to residential care. DESIGN: Prospective pre-intervention and post-intervention study. SETTING: One major acute care hospital and one subacute aged-care hospital; 128 residential care facilities (RCF) in Victoria, Australia. PARTICIPANTS: 428 patients (median age 84 years, IQR 79-88) discharged to a RCF from an inpatient ward over two 12-week periods. INTERVENTION: Seven-day IRCMAC auto-populated with patient and medication data from the hospitals' pharmacy dispensing software, completed and signed by a hospital pharmacist and sent with the patient to the RCF. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Primary end points were the proportion of patients with one or more missed or significantly delayed (>50% of prescribed dose interval) medication doses, and the proportion of patients whose RCF medication chart was written by a locum doctor, in the 24 h after discharge. Secondary end points included RCF staff and general practitioners' opinions about the IRCMAC. RESULTS: The number of patients who experienced one or more missed or delayed doses fell from 37/202 (18.3%) to 6/226 (2.7%) (difference in percentages 15.6%, 95% CI 9.5% to 21.9%, p<0.001). The number of patients whose RCF medication chart was written by a locum doctor fell from 66/202 (32.7%) to 25/226 (11.1%) (difference in percentages 21.6%, 95% CI 13.5% to 29.7%, p<0.001). For 189/226 (83.6%) discharges, RCF staff reported that the IRCMAC improved continuity of care; 31/35 (88.6%) general practitioners said that the IRCMAC reduced the urgency for them to attend the RCF and 35/35 (100%) said that IRCMACs should be provided for all patients discharged to a RCF. CONCLUSIONS: A hospital pharmacist-prepared IRCMAC significantly reduced medication errors and use of locum medical services after discharge from hospital to residential care.

Potential of pharmacists to help reduce the burden of poorly managed cardiovascular risk.

INTRODUCTION: Rural areas require better use of existing health professionals to ensure capacity to deliver improved cardiovascular outcomes. Community pharmacists (CPs) are accessible to most communities and can potentially undertake expanded roles in prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD). OBJECTIVE: This study aims to establish frequency of contact with general practitioners (GPs) and CPs by patients at high risk of CVD or with inadequately controlled CVD risk factors. DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Population survey using randomly selected individuals from the Wimmera region electoral roll and incorporating a physical health check and self-administered health questionnaire. Overall, 1500 were invited to participate. RESULTS: The participation rate was 51% when ineligible individuals were excluded. Nine out of 10 participants visited one or both types of practitioner in the previous 12 months. Substantially more participants visited GPs compared with CPs (88.5% versus 66.8%). With the exception of excess alcohol intake, the median number of opportunities to intervene for every inadequately controlled CVD risk factor and among high risk patient groups at least doubled for the professions combined when compared with GP visits alone. CONCLUSION: Opportunities exist to intervene more frequently with target groups by engaging CPs more effectively but would require a significant attitude shift towards CPs. Mechanisms for greater pharmacist integration into primary care teams should be investigated.

Barriers and Facilitators to Adoption of a Web-based Antibiotic Decision Support System.

OBJECTIVE: To measure clinicians' perceptions of barriers and facilitators to the adoption of a Computerised Decision Support System (CDSS) for antibiotic approval, and to examine the correlation between these perceptions and actual usage of the system by clinicians. METHODS: This study was conducted in a tertiary care university hospital of Melbourne, Australia. A survey tool comprising of demographic items and newly developed scales to measure clinicians' perceptions of barriers and facilitators to use of an CDSS was developed. Cross-sectional mail surveys were sent to 250 Junior and Senior Medical Staff and Pharmacists in a tertiary care hospital. Cronbach's alpha was used to measure the reliability of the perceptions scales. One way ANOVA was used to assess the differences between participants' responses; Tamhane's test was used for post-hoc analysis. Pearson correlations were used to measure the relationship between the participants' scores on the scales and their actual use of the CDSS under study. RESULTS: The overall survey response rate was 54%. Cronbach's alpha for the perceived barrier and facilitator scales were 0.80 and 0.88, respectively. Senior medical staff perceived significantly more barriers than junior medical staff and pharmacists. Statistically significant differences were observed between the scores of the participants on a number of items on the perceived barriers and facilitators scales. Negative correlations were observed between the participants' scores on the perceived barriers scale and their use of the system. (r= -0.415, p= 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The scales to measure perceived barriers and facilitators to adopt antibiotic CDSS have shown acceptable reliability and validity measures. Important differences exist between senior and junior medical staff about the barriers and facilitators to adopting the CDSS which may influence future use by clinicians.

A palliative cancer care flexible education program for Australian community pharmacists.

OBJECTIVE: To implement and evaluate a flexible palliative care education program for Australian community pharmacists. DESIGN: After identifying pharmacists' education needs, the program content and format were developed. This included identifying expert writers to create modules, assigning education and palliative care specialists to review content, and designing Web hosting of materials. The program was comprised of 11 modules and 79 activities. ASSESSMENT: An average of 28 responses was posted for each of the 20 noticeboard activities. Of the 60 pharmacists who began the program, 15 contributed to the discussion group, with an average of 3 posts each. Participants' responses to an online questionnaire indicated the program addressed their education needs and improved their knowledge and confidence in providing palliative cancer care. CONCLUSION: A program that pharmacists could access at a time and place convenient to them via the Internet was developed. Pharmacists indicated the program positively impacted their practice.

Bringing patients' own medications into an emergency department by ambulance: effect on prescribing accuracy when these patients are admitted to hospital.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the availability of patients' own medications (POM) in emergency departments (EDs) results in decreased prescribing errors of patients' usual medications on admission. DESIGN, PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: Observational study of patients presenting by ambulance to the ED of Austin Hospital, a Melbourne metropolitan teaching hospital, between 13 and 31 March 2006. Patients were enrolled if they were brought to the ED by ambulance, aged 18 years or older, taking four or more regular medications, admitted to hospital, and not referred to a pharmacist before the admission medication chart was written. ED pharmacists determined patients' regular medications and details of medications brought in by ambulance. Admission medication charts were assessed and discrepancies were recorded as prescribing errors if a change was made after a pharmacist discussed the discrepancy with the prescriber. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Percentage of medications correctly prescribed when POM were brought in to the ED compared with when they were not; the nature and frequency of prescribing errors on admission. RESULTS: 100 patients were enrolled; they were taking 4-17 regular medications (mean, 8.0; SD, 3.7). Among the 428 POM that were brought to the ED, 56 errors occurred (13.1%); and among the 372 regular medications taken by patients for whom POM were not brought in, 95 errors occurred (25.5%) (difference in percentages, 12.4%; 95% CI, 6.7%-18.0%; P<0.001). The most prevalent prescribing errors were omissions (40.4%), and most errors (72.8%) were classified as of "moderate" clinical significance. CONCLUSIONS: When POM were brought to the ED by paramedics, significantly fewer errors occurred on admission medication charts. An intervention program to encourage paramedics to bring POM to the ED is indicated.

A pharmacy preregistration course using online teaching and learning methods.

OBJECTIVE: To design and evaluate a preregistration course utilizing asynchronous online learning as the primary distance education delivery method. DESIGN: Online course components including tutorials, quizzes, and moderated small-group asynchronous case-based discussions were implemented. Online delivery was supplemented with self-directed and face-to-face learning. ASSESSMENT: Pharmacy graduates who had completed the course in 2004 and 2005 were surveyed. The majority felt they had benefited from all components of the course, and that online delivery provided benefits including increased peer support, shared learning, and immediate feedback on performance. A majority of the first cohort reported that the workload associated with asynchronous online discussions was too great. The course was altered in 2005 to reduce the online component. Participant satisfaction improved, and most felt that the balance of online to face-to-face delivery was appropriate. CONCLUSION: A new pharmacy preregistration course was successfully implemented. Online teaching and learning was well accepted and appeared to deliver benefits over traditional distance education methods once workload issues were addressed.

Standardised assessment of patients' capacity to manage medications: a systematic review of published instruments.

BACKGROUND: Older people are commonly prescribed complex multi-drug regimens while also experiencing declines in the cognitive and physical abilities required for medication management, leading to increased risk of medication errors and need for assisted living. The purpose of this study was to review published instruments designed to assess patients' capacity to self-administer medications. METHODS: Searches of Medline, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, International Pharmaceutical Abstracts, Health and Psychosocial Instruments, Google, and reference lists of identified publications were conducted to identify English-language articles describing development and validation of instruments designed to assess patients' capacity to self-administer medications. Methodological quality of validation studies was rated independently against published criteria by two reviewers and reliability and validity data were reviewed. RESULTS: Thirty-two instruments were identified, of which 14 met pre-defined inclusion criteria. Instruments fell into two categories: those that used patients' own medications as the basis for assessment and those that used a simulated medication regimen. The quality of validation studies was generally low to moderate and few instruments were subjected to reliability testing. Most instruments had some evidence of construct validity, through associations with tests of cognitive function, health literacy, activities of daily living or measures of medication management or adherence. Only one instrument had sensitivity and specificity data with respect to prediction of medication-related outcomes such as adherence to therapy. Only three instruments had validity data from more than one independent research group. CONCLUSION: A number of performance-based instruments exist to assess patients' capacity to manage their own medications. These may be useful for identifying physical and cognitive barriers to successful medication management, but further studies are needed to determine whether they are able to accurately and reliably predict medication outcomes.

Community pharmacists' preferences for continuing education delivery in Australia.

INTRODUCTION: New technologies such as the Internet offer an increasing number of options for the delivery of continuing education (CE) to community pharmacists. Many of these options are being utilized to overcome access- and cost-related problems. This paper identifies learning preferences of Australian community pharmacists for CE and identifies issues with the integration of these into contemporary models of CE delivery. METHODS: Four focus group teleconferences were conducted with practicing community pharmacists (n = 15) using a semistructured format and asking generally about their CE and continuing professional development (CPD) experiences. RESULTS: Pharmacists reported preferences for CE that were very closely aligned to the principles of adult learning. There was a strong preference for interactive and multidisciplinary CE. Engaging in CPD was seen as valuable in promoting reflective learning. DISCUSSION: These results suggest that pharmacists have a strong preference for CE that is based on adult learning principles. Professional organizations should take note of this and ensure that new CE formats do not compromise the ability of pharmacists to engage in interactive, multidisciplinary, and problem-based CE. Equally, the role of attendance-based CE in maintaining peer networks should not be overlooked.

Pharmacy education in the context of Australian practice.

Accredited pharmacy programs in Australia provide a high standard of pharmacy education, attracting quality students. The principal pharmacy degree remains the 4-year bachelor of pharmacy degree; however, some universities offer graduate-entry master of pharmacy degrees taught in 6 semesters over a 2-year period. Curricula include enabling and applied pharmaceutical science, pharmacy practice, and clinical and experiential teaching, guided by competency standards and an indicative curriculum (a list of topics that are required to be included in a pharmacy degree curriculum before the program must be accredited by the Australian Pharmacy Council). Graduate numbers have increased approximately 250% with a dramatic increase from 6 pharmacy degree programs in 1997 to 21 such programs in 2008. Graduates must complete approximately 12 months of internship in a practice setting after graduation and prior to the competency-based registration examinations. An overview of pharmacy education in Australia is provided in the context of the healthcare system, a national system for subsidizing the cost of prescription medicines, the Australian National Medicines Policy and the practice of pharmacy. Furthermore, the innovations in practice and technology that will influence education in the future are discussed.