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Background: Lay press investigations have been published that describe pharmacist errors and the workplace environment in the community pharmacy setting. However, recent studies that explore pharmacists' perceptions of patient safety in the workplace are limited. Objectives: 1) To describe pharmacists' perceptions of workplace patient safety; 2) To compare pharmacists' perceptions of workplace patient safety across practice setting type, pharmacist roles, average hours worked per shift, and average hours worked per week. Methods: Actively licensed Tennessee pharmacists were recruited from January 1 and June 30, 2019 to complete a 13-item survey of workplace patient safety perceptions ( =1391). Descriptive statistics were calculated, and nonparametric statistical tests employed to compare differences in perceptions across practice setting type, pharmacist roles, and hours worked per shift and per week. Results: Statistically significant differences in workplace patient safety perceptions were noted across practice setting type (p values <.001) and pharmacist roles (p values <.001). The extent to which pharmacists agreed/strongly agreed that their employer provides a work environment that allows for safe patient care ranged from 29.7% of chain community pharmacists to 85% of compounding pharmacists. Fifty-two percent of staff pharmacists, 56.5% of relief pharmacists, and 58.5% of managers/pharmacists in charge agreed or strongly agreed that their employer provides a work environment that allows for safe patient care, whereas 89.3% of regional managers/directors/vice-presidents and 72.5% of clinical/specialty pharmacists indicated the same. Average hours per shift was inversely correlated with perceptions of workplace patient safety (p values <.001). Conclusion: Tennessee pharmacists' perceptions of workplace patient safety varied widely across practice setting type and pharmacist roles. Perceptions of safety were notably lower in the chain community pharmacy setting. Additional research is warranted to better understand the relationship between pharmacist perceptions and quantifiable patient safety metrics, particularly in the chain community pharmacy setting.

The impact of the pharmacist in elderly patient healthcare management is developing. In our study, the interventions made by community pharmacists in the RESPECT study (Randomised Evaluation of Shared Prescribing for Elderly people in the Community over Time) were analysed and evaluated. In our study, the study sample was chosen according to specific criteria. The outcomes of these pharmacist interventions were measured by a clinical panel which scored and categorised each intervention into one of five categories. The study also investigated the percentage of interventions implemented or not implemented by GPs. In our study, initially 398 patients and of these 52 were excluded because their files did not contain the entry criteria information, leaving 346 patients who were identified with a mean (SD) of 8.9 (3.3) pharmaceutical care plans which contained mean (SD) 8.2(7.2) pharmaceutical care issues. Of these 43% were males and 57% were females with a mean (SD) age of 81(3.7) years. There were many missing data about drugs prescribed due to poor documentation by community pharmacists in the RESPECT study particularly at post study period (T5). The mean (SD) for all drugs prescribed was 35.9 (12.38) for each patient and for the whole study period including the post period (T5). In our study a total of 2879 individual pharmaceutical care issues were identified. A clinical panel judged that 43% of the interventions prevented harm, 31% improved the efficacy of management, 3% were detrimental to the patient's management plan, 12% only provided information and there was insufficient information to make a decision on the remaining 11%. For the classifications prevented harm to the patient and improve efficacy of management, the panel gave a score of 7 or more to 264 and 103 respectively which were classed as potential prevented hospital admissions. The outcome of 1628 could not be determined from the data and the pharmacist did not intervene on 361 occasions. Of the remaining 890 (30.9%) GPs accepted 715 and did not accept 175. The cost effectiveness of providing pharmaceutical care to older people by community pharmacists could be estimated (£620,000) by calculating reduction in expenditure of hospital admissions. In addition, there would be the possibility of reduced pressure on other NHS resources such as availability of hospital beds. The involvement of a clinical pharmacist in elderly patient health care, within the setting of a community pharmacy, provided positive healthcare outcomes and therefore should be encouraged in line with the new white paper for England "Building on strengths-delivering the future" (2008). The study emphasises the importance of revising the nature and period of postgraduate training for community pharmacists who are going to provide pharmaceutical care for elderly patients. This raises the possibility of specialised competency based postgraduate training for community pharmacists with a special interest in the care of older people (PhwSI). This would enable community pharmacists practising as generalists to become advanced practitioners in the specialist clinical area of older people and ensure a consistent level of service for elderly patients in line with government expectations.

Objectives: 1) To determine 2010 pharmacy-related ambulatory care sensitive condition (ACSC) hospital discharges by Tennessee (TN) county; 2) To explore pharmacy-related ACSC hospital discharges across county characteristics for Tennessee counties, including community pharmacies per county, age, and county rurality; 3) To explore pharmacy-related ACSC hospital discharges across age for northeastern Tennessee counties. Methods: Data were obtained from the TN Department of Health Statistics (hospital discharge data), TN Board of Pharmacy (licensed community pharmacies), the United States (US) Census Bureau (county-level populations), the Office of Rural Health Policy (rural designations), and the US Health Resources and Services Administration (health professional shortage area designations). ACSC discharges were determined using the Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality's (AHRQ's) Prevention Quality Indictors (PQIs) for asthma, bacterial pneumonia, congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, hypertension, uncontrolled diabetes, and short-term and long-term diabetes complications. County-level analyses were population adjusted and analyzed across age. Analyses were conducted using SPSS and ArcGIS software. Results: In 2010, 79,683 hospital discharges were noted for pharmacy-related ACSCs, 55% of which were for residents 65 and over. For northeast Tennessee counties, 8,538 were documented accounting for 11% of Tennessee pharmacy-related ACSCs discharges. Bacterial pneumonia, heart failure, and COPD accounted for nearly 65% of discharges in northeastern Tennessee counties. The number of community pharmacies per Tennessee county was statistically significantly negatively correlated with county-level bacterial pneumonia (r=-0.339; p=0.001), CHF (r=-0.215; p=0.036), and COPD (r=-0.403; p<0.001) hospital discharges. Implications/Conclusions: Community pharmacies have the potential to positively impact the health needs of Tennesseans by targeting services (e.g., MTM, immunizations, adherence assistance) based on ambulatory care sensitive conditions. Future research is warranted to quantify current services and determine the capacity to provide such services.

Practice-based research networks (PBRNs) are groups of health care practitioners who engage in translational research and quality improvement activities, with the overarching goal of improving patient care in primary care settings. The Appalachian Research Network (AppNET), a rural primary care PBRN, was created in 2009 and comprises 17 clinics in 16 rural communities in South Central Appalachia. Nationally, only 4 of 152 PBRNs registered with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) place particular emphasis on community pharmacies and pharmacists in research efforts. Researchers at ETSU seek to integrate community pharmacies into AppNET, thereby establishing a novel interprofessional rural PBRN. The objective of this study was to assess pharmacist perceptions regarding practice-based research and interest in participating in AppNET. Barriers to participation in a PBRN, perceived benefits of participation, and practice-specific characteristics were also assessed. Contact information was obtained via telephone calls made to individual pharmacies in AppNET communities. Thereafter, paper-based surveys were mailed to 69 pharmacist contacts, along with a personalized cover letter and a stamped return envelope. A total of two mailings were used to recruit pharmacists to participate in the study. A response rate of 42% was obtained. Respondents were on average 44 years of age and had been licensed as a pharmacist for an average of 19 years. A large majority of respondents (86%) were very or somewhat interested in participating in AppNET. The majority of respondents felt that time constraints and workflow interruptions were the greatest barriers to participation. One hundred percent of respondents indicated that research on prescription drug abuse, medication adherence, and medication safety are very or somewhat applicable to their practice settings. Ninety-two percent felt that research on value-added services (e.g., immunizations, diabetes education) and medication therapy management was somewhat or very applicable to their practice. Overall, pharmacist respondents in AppNET communities indicated interest in research that benefits the care of their patients and interest in AppNET. Researchers are presently conducting a third recruitment attempt and will thereafter develop AppNET enrollment mechanisms that minimize barriers to participation of community pharmacies in practice-based research.

Bakgrund: Denna rapporten undersökte målbilden av en receptarie, en treårig farmaciutbildning i Sverige. Idag, är inte mycket arbete gjort för att utveckla och definiera målbilden av en receptarie. Olika verksamheter kan ha olika uppfattningar om vad en receptarie är menad att göra i sitt arbete. Mål: Att studera hur den nya nationella målbilden för receptarier uppfattas i grundutbildningarna, i ansvar och arbetsuppgifter på apotek samt vilka förändringar som behöver genomföras enligt de som har möjlighet att påverka. Metod: En enkätstudie skickades ut till receptarieutbildningar, apoteksaktörer och relevanta myndigheter och organisationer, som frågade om deras uppfattning av en receptaries målbild jämfört med Apotekarsocietetens målbild. Resultat: Över lag instämde enkätdeltagarna med Apotekarsocietetens målbild, och många deltagare uttryckte en vilja att vidare bidra för att uppnå målen. Åsikterna om de andra verksamheternas bidrag till målsättningarna var negativa. Apoteksaktörerna var den gruppen som ansågs bidra sämst till att uppfylla målsättningarna. Diskussion: Synen på apoteksaktörernas bidrag var mycket olika beroende på vem som frågades, där apoteken själva ansåg att de bidrog mycket väl, medan andra verksamheter tyckte de bidrog mycket lite. Många framförde även önskemålet att öka fokus på rådgivning och patientkommunikation. Slutsats: Apotekarsocietetens målbild stämde bra överens med deltagarnas uppfattningar. Deltagarna hade överlag en positiv inställning och uttryckte en vilja att arbeta vidare med många förslag på förbättringar. Huvudresultatet av rapporten var skillnaden i syn på apoteksaktörernas bidrag. / Background: This report explored the vision of a “receptarie”, a three-year long pharmacist bachelor’s degree in Sweden. Today, not much work is done to develop and define the profession of a “receptarie”. Different actors might have different understandings on what a “receptarie” should do in their work. Aim: To study how the new target set by Apotekarsocieteten is perceived by the relevant educations and in responsibilities and work tasks in pharmacies, aswell as what changes is needed to be performed according to the ones in a position to influence. Method: The study involved four “receptarie”-educations, located in Göteborg, Malmö. Umeå and Uppsala. A survey was performed, questioning the different educations, apothecary's and relevant organisations about their view of what a “receptarie”s goal is compared to a target published by Apotekarsocieteten. Result: In broad, the participants in the survey agreed with the publishing from Apotekarsocieteten and many participants expressed a will to further contribute to reaching the set goals. The opinions of other actors’ contributions were negative. The apothecaries were seen as the least contributing actors. Discussion: The biggest deviance, was the perception of the contribution of apothecaries, where they themselves belived they contributed well, but other occupations did not. Many participants expressed the desire to increase the focus of counseling and patient communication. Conclusion: Apotekarsocietetens target harmonized well with the participants. The participants had a positive view and had many suggestions for improvements. The main result was the perceived difference in contribution from the apothecaries.

No description available.

The impact of the pharmacist in elderly patient healthcare management is developing. In our study, the interventions made by community pharmacists in the RESPECT study (Randomised Evaluation of Shared Prescribing for Elderly people in the Community over Time) were analysed and evaluated. In our study, the study sample was chosen according to specific criteria. The outcomes of these pharmacist interventions were measured by a clinical panel which scored and categorised each intervention into one of five categories. The study also investigated the percentage of interventions implemented or not implemented by GPs. In our study, initially 398 patients and of these 52 were excluded because their files did not contain the entry criteria information, leaving 346 patients who were identified with a mean (SD) of 8.9 (3.3) pharmaceutical care plans which contained mean (SD) 8.2(7.2) pharmaceutical care issues. Of these 43% were males and 57% were females with a mean (SD) age of 81(3.7) years. There were many missing data about drugs prescribed due to poor documentation by community pharmacists in the RESPECT study particularly at post study period (T5). The mean (SD) for all drugs prescribed was 35.9 (12.38) for each patient and for the whole study period including the post period (T5). In our study a total of 2879 individual pharmaceutical care issues were identified. A clinical panel judged that 43% of the interventions prevented harm, 31% improved the efficacy of management, 3% were detrimental to the patient¿s management plan, 12% only provided information and there was insufficient information to make a decision on the remaining 11%. For the classifications prevented harm to the patient and improve efficacy of management, the panel gave a score of 7 or more to 264 and 103 respectively which were classed as potential prevented hospital admissions. The outcome of 1628 could not be determined from the data and the pharmacist did not intervene on 361 occasions. Of the remaining 890 (30.9%) GPs accepted 715 and did not accept 175. The cost effectiveness of providing pharmaceutical care to older people by community pharmacists could be estimated (£620,000) by calculating reduction in expenditure of hospital admissions. In addition, there would be the possibility of reduced pressure on other NHS resources such as availability of hospital beds. The involvement of a clinical pharmacist in elderly patient health care, within the setting of a community pharmacy, provided positive healthcare outcomes and therefore should be encouraged in line with the new white paper for England "Building on strengths-delivering the future" (2008). The study emphasises the importance of revising the nature and period of postgraduate training for community pharmacists who are going to provide pharmaceutical care for elderly patients. This raises the possibility of specialised competency based postgraduate training for community pharmacists with a special interest in the care of older people (PhwSI). This would enable community pharmacists practising as generalists to become advanced practitioners in the specialist clinical area of older people and ensure a consistent level of service for elderly patients in line with government expectations.