Pharmacy is an information-driven profession that requires effective face-to-face pharmacist-client communication. With the addition of corporate community pharmacies to traditional independent community pharmacies in South Africa (SA), new challenges may hamper pharmacist-client interactions. This study aimed to identify, adapt and improve the communication skills pharmacists require for a changing community pharmacy environment. Specific objectives were to identify basic communication skills, to evaluate the use of these skills by community pharmacists in the Nelson Mandela Metropole (NMM), to identify communication barriers, and to identify any differences in pharmacist-client communication in the two community pharmacy sectors. A mixed methods research design was implemented. The empirical activities consisted of three client focus groups (17 citizens from the NMM), a client survey (220 clients visiting seven independent and seven corporate community pharmacies in the NMM), a pseudo-client study (the same 14 community pharmacies in NMM), and a Delphi study. Twenty-one pharmacists from the 14 community pharmacies participated in Phase one of the Delphi study; nine academic pharmacists from five pharmacy departments/schools/faculties in SA participated in Phase two. Various qualitative and quantitative techniques were used to analyse and interpret the results. Results indicated that clients consult on many occasions with community pharmacists. Community and academic pharmacists listed listening and nonverbal skills as most important communication skills to ensure effective pharmacist-client communication. Counselling privacy and language barriers were listed as major problems influencing the interaction. The results obtained allowed the researcher to propose a practical communication model to assist future community pharmacists in communication skills training

Thesis (Ph.D.) - University of Queensland, 2005. / Includes bibliography.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2000. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 279-289). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.

This research aims to assess the existing relationship and characteristics between Maori health providers (MHPs) and pharmacy services in New Zealand and to provide future direction, pathways and strategies for collaboration, planning and improving health outcomes for Maori within the primary health care environment. The characteristics of the relationship were identified and discussed before exploring strategies to strengthen the relationship and to improve Māori health outcomes. The assessment and analysis of the characteristics required an exploration of MHPs current knowledge of pharmacy services, the expectations of MHPs of pharmacy services and the current knowledge of pharmacists of MHP services and Maori health. Themes identified that characterised the relationship were related to knowledge, health philosophies, interaction, service and capacity issues. Knowledge issues incorporated themes of group dynamics, historical context, participant knowledge, pharmacy participant knowledge, MHP participant knowledge, solutions/ outcome knowledge, consideration of Maori. Health philosophies related to themes of paradigms/worldviews, kaupapa Maori, capacity, culture and delivery of services, Treaty of Waitangi, knowledge of culture, communication and te reo, rongoa Maori, environmental culture, access, tino rangatiratanga. Interaction issues discussed the themes of collaboration and communication, extent of collaboration, contact with Maori, community relationships, cost, benefits and opportunities. The pharmacy environment, cost and health service delivery were identified as themes relating to service issues. Capacity issues included themes of mana, direct workforce development (education, employment, promotion), indirect workforce development (education, environment, relationship building, funding), and the Maori Pharmacists Association. This research attempted to follow kaupapa Maori qualitative research methodology, methods and the epistemology of kaupapa Maori throughout the research and design process. One to one semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants from each group. The sample size was established based on the purposeful sampling strategy of maximum variation sampling (7 MHP participants, 8 pharmacy participants. Responses were directly related to differences in world-views and the historical context of the two health provider groups with respect to their roles in health. Variations within each group were related to knowledge, location and previous experience working with their counterparts. Recommendations were associated with themes/issues of environment, knowledge, communication, cultural awareness, collaboration, services and the increased awareness of the roles and responsibilities with respect to each health provider group. This dissertation also highlighted a number of key components that formed a collaborative, empowerment model of health created between organisations with different world-views, which can be adapted to a number of environments where there are different or opposing world-views within the overall same patient population. It is anticipated that the results and outcomes from this research will help develop Maori responsive pharmacy services based on health promotion and wellness to Maori locally, regionally, nationally and have a positive impact on Maori health in collaboration with MHPs. Areas of pharmaceutical care are highlighted which may encourage projects or initiatives in collaboration with MHPs to enhance health gains for Maori, while increasing professional practice roles and scope for pharmacy.

Pharmacy as a profession is on a path of significant change with many external and internal influences on the nature and conceptions of professional practice and the diverse and changing nature of this knowledge in turn creates a challenge for pharmacy educators. Conceptual changes to pharmacy knowledge and practice have profound pedagogical implications for how pharmacy education will change over the next few years. This study makes an original contribution to knowledge in pharmacy education, both in terms of the methodology used (the use of artefacts to explore learning with pharmacy students and the use of theory from anthropology, fine art and literature from English medieval poetry to view the data) and also in terms of the findings. The key findings of the study are that artefacts afford access to insight into pharmacy students’ learning, and use of these identified a number of learning and assessment practices, particularly some normally un-noticed practices. Using fine art to view participants’ assessment practices has allowed insight into their conceptions of assessment (as the summative written examination) and hence their views on feedback. In particular there was a strong affective dimension expressed in participants’ accounts of their learning, which is often ignored in teaching, learning and assessment practices. Participants’ learning is constructed through a ‘meshwork’ of interconnected and interwoven practices. The difficulties experienced by participants were explored and were found to be primarily modal (relating to a particular way of thinking or practising) or ontological (relating to ‘being’ or ‘becoming’ as a pharmacy student or to their professional identity). Recommendations for MPharm curriculum development at Robert Gordon University are discussed along with the implications for the wider professional community. (Please note this is a redacted version of the thesis. Some images have been removed for copyright reasons.)

Analysis of the Dispensing Care Provided by Pharmacies in Hradec Kralove Author: Aneta Ličková Supervisor: PharmDr. Jan Kostřiba, Ph.D. Charles University, Faculty of Pharmacy, Hradec Kralove Department of Social and Clinical Pharmacy Introduction: Nowadays, a high professional level of dispensing activities is an indispensable prerequisite for the proper work of a pharmacist. A pharmacist is also very often the last link in the chain of healthcare professionals involved in the treatment of a patient and thus has a unique opportunity to detect any potential errors or risk of a given therapy. Regarding the self- medication, the pharmacist is often the only person, with whom the patient consults his therapy. Objective: The aim of this thesis is to analyse dispensing activities provided by pharmacies in Hradec Kralove. Methodology: Analysis of a dispensing activity of a prescription-only drug and over-the- counter product. The list of pharmacies was identified through the SÚKL database. The data collected during the visits were from the 32 pharmacies in total. The data collection tool was mystery shopping that followed thoroughly prepared scenario. The customer was a 26-year-old woman in the 10th week of pregnancy who had come up to pharmacies with a prescription for tetracycline antibiotics and she...