scholarly journals Training and Toolkit Resources to Support Implementation of a Community Pharmacy Fall Prevention Service

Pharmacy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robinson ◽  
Renfro ◽  
Shockley ◽  
Blalock ◽  
Watkins ◽  
...  

Community pharmacies are an ideal setting to manage high-risk medications and screen older adults at risk for falls. Appropriate training and resources are needed to successfully implement services in this setting. The purpose of this paper is to identify the key training, tools, and resources to support implementation of fall prevention services. The service was implemented in a network of community pharmacies located in North Carolina. Pharmacies were provided with onboard and longitudinal training, and a project coach. A toolkit contained resources to collect medication information, identify high-risk medications, develop and share recommendations with prescribers, market the service, and educate patients. Project champions at each pharmacy received a nine-question, web-based survey (Qualtrics) to identify usefulness of the training and resources. The quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Thirty-one community pharmacies implemented the service. Twenty-three project champions (74%) completed the post-intervention survey. Comprehensive onboard training was rated as more useful than longitudinal training. Resources to identify high-risk medications, develop recommendations, and share recommendations with prescribers were considered most useful. By providing appropriate training and resources to support fall prevention services, community pharmacists can improve patient care as part of their routine workflow.

Background: Effective management of diabetes mellitus depends on efficacy of therapy as well as patient adherence to medication therapy and non-pharmacological approaches. One of the most important tools to improve patient adherence is counseling. Community pharmacists can effectively contribute to patient care as they have the expertise and accessibility to do the task appropriately. Objective: The objective of the study was to evaluate the impact of pharmacist counseling on glucose control and medication adherence of diabetic patients attending community pharmacies in Pakistan. Method: A randomized, controlled, single blinded, pre-post intervention study design was used. The respondents included patients diagnosed with both diabetes mellitus (Type I or II) visiting community pharmacies for purchasing their regular medicine. Simple random sampling technique by lottery method was used to select community pharmacies to be included in-group A (intervention n=4) and group B (control n=4). The total number of patients were 40 in each group while estimating a drop-out rate of 25%. Convenience sampling technique was used to select patients visiting community pharmacies. Patients in the intervention group received special counseling. Blood glucose was checked after every 15 days for a period of six months. Pre-validated tools such as diabetes knowledge questionnaire 24 and brief medication questionnaire were used. Data was cleaned, coded and analyzed in SPSS 21. Wilcoxon test (p≥0.05) was used to compare pre-post intervention knowledge regarding diabetes and. Mann-Whitney test (p≥0.05) was used to find differences among medication adherence among control and intervention groups as well as pre and post intervention. Results: The results of the present study showed that respondents having diabetes since the past 1-3 years had comparatively better knowledge scores (18.8, 3±2.04) after intervention. Mean knowledge scores regarding diabetes mellitus among intervention group at baseline was (16.02, ±2.93) which was improved after six months (19.97, ±2.66). Significant difference was observed (p≤0.05) in pre-post intervention knowledge regarding diabetes management. Knowledge of patients was improved regarding different aspects of diabetes management after counseling by community pharmacists. The fasting blood glucose improved at three months (9.32, ±1.92) and after six months (8.95, ±1.45) in intervention group. Conclusion: The results of the current study concluded that counseling by community pharmacist has a positive impact on blood glucose management among diabetic and patients. Educational programs should be initiated by community pharmacists as this can lead to improvement in glycemic control and enhance the image of pharmacist as a key health care member in management of chronic diseases.


2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelly A. Murray ◽  
Monica L. Skomo ◽  
Sandra M. Carter

Objectives: (1) Compare pharmacists' self-assessed knowledge of migraine before and after an educational intervention; (2) Compare pharmacists' self-reported care behaviors following an educational intervention with a control group of pharmacists; (3) Identify interactions between the educational intervention results and individual independent variables. Design: Quasi-experimental, parallel design. Setting: Twenty community pharmacies in northeastern Oklahoma from March to May 2010. Participants: 49 pharmacists at one of twenty community pharmacies, with active and in-good-standing Oklahoma pharmacy licenses. Intervention: Two-hour educational session on migraine identification and current treatment. Main outcome measures: Compare pharmacists' self-assessed knowledge of migraine before and after an educational intervention and compare self-reported care behaviors of these same pharmacists with a control group of pharmacists. Results: Pharmacists' self-assessed knowledge mean scores were significantly higher post-intervention compared to pre-intervention (p<0.0001). Self-assessed knowledge was higher in the intervention group post-questionnaire scores compared to the control group of pharmacists (p=0.004). Intervention group pharmacists were more confident in their ability to maintain knowledge of migraine (p=0.04). No difference was seen regarding difficulty in providing care for a migraineur (p=0.16) or in how the pharmacists perceived employer culture (p=0.79). No significant interactions were found between the educational intervention and demographic variables collected. Conclusion: Attending an educational program on migraine improved pharmacists' knowledge and confidence when providing care to migraineurs.   Type: Original Research


Pharmacy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sherilyn K. D. Houle ◽  
Kristina Kozlovsky ◽  
Heidi V. J. Fernandes ◽  
Zahava Rosenberg-Yunger

In December 2016, pharmacists in Ontario, Canada with authorization to administer injections saw an expansion in their scope from a restriction to the influenza vaccination only to now including an additional 13 vaccine-preventable diseases, largely those related to travel. It was uncertain whether this change in scope would see sufficient uptake, or translate to a corresponding expansion in other travel health service offerings from community pharmacies. In October/November 2017 a survey was conducted of all licensed community pharmacists in Ontario, followed by semi-structured interviews with 6 survey respondents in June 2018. A web-based survey of members of the public from a single region of the province was also conducted in September 2018 to assess uptake of expanded vaccination services. Broad variability in uptake of these services was noted, ranging from the dispensing of travel-related medications and vaccinations only through to vaccine administration and prescribing under medical directive; however, uptake was generally at the lower end of this spectrum. This was evidenced by 94% of pharmacists reporting administering fewer than 10 travel vaccinations per month, fewer than 10% of patients reporting receiving a travel vaccine administered by a pharmacist, and a maximum of 30 pharmacies (of nearly 6000 in the province) designated to provide yellow fever vaccinations. Fewer than 1 in 3 pharmacists reported performing some form of pre-travel consultation in their practice, often limited to low-risk cases only. Barriers and facilitators reported were similar for these services as they were for other non-dispensing services, including insufficient time to integrate the service into their workload, perceived lack of knowledge and confidence in travel health, and low patient awareness of these new services available to them through community pharmacies.


Author(s):  
Madeeha Malik ◽  
Usman Aslam ◽  
Azhar Hussain ◽  
Ayisha Hashmi

Background: Effective management of hypertension depends on efficacy of therapy as well as patient adherence to medication therapy and non-pharmacological approaches. As one of the important member of primary healthcare team, community pharmacists can play a key role in counseling patients and managing their chronic illnesses. Aim: The objective of the study was to assess the effectiveness of pharmacist counseling on management of hypertension of patients attending community pharmacies in twin cities of Pakistan. Methodology: A randomized, controlled, single blinded, pre-post intervention study design was used. Pharmacists working at community pharmacies included in group A (intervention) were targeted for training while no training was given to the pharmacists working at community pharmacies included in group B (control). The total numbers of patients were 40 in each group while estimating a drop-out rate of 25%. Patients in the intervention group received special counseling sessions by the community pharmacist whereas those in the control group received the usual pharmacy services for six months. Pre-validated tool hypertension knowledge level scale was used to assess disease knowledge. The questionnaire was administered by the pharmacists to the respondents at baseline and after 6 months. Data was cleaned, coded and analyzed in SPSS 21. Results: The results of the present study showed that respondents having hypertension since the past one year had comparatively better knowledge (23.83, ±0.40) after six months of counseling. Mean knowledge scores regarding hypertension among intervention group at baseline was (15.60, ±3.33) which was improved after six months (18.35, ±2.31). The systolic and diastolic blood pressure also improved in intervention group after 6 months of counseling. Significant difference was observed (p≤0.05) in pre-post intervention knowledge regarding hypertension management. Knowledge of patients was improved regarding different aspects of hypertension management after counseling by community pharmacists. Conclusion: The results of the current study concluded that counseling by community pharmacist had a positive impact on hypertension management. Educational programs should be initiated by community pharmacists as this can lead to improvement in blood pressure goals, disease knowledge and medication adherence and enhance the image of pharmacist as a key health care member in management of chronic diseases.


Author(s):  
Marle Gemmeke ◽  
Ellen S. Koster ◽  
Eline A. Rodijk ◽  
Katja Taxis ◽  
Marcel L. Bouvy

AbstractBackground Pharmacists may contribute to fall prevention particularly by identifying and deprescribing fall risk-increasing drugs (FRIDs) in patients with high fall risk. Objective To assess community pharmacists’ perceptions on providing fall prevention services, and to identify their barriers and facilitators in offering these fall prevention services including deprescribing of FRIDs. Setting A mixed-methods study was conducted with Dutch pharmacists. Method Quantitative (ranking statements on a Likert scale, survey) and qualitative data (semi-structured interviews) were collected. Out of 466 pharmacists who were invited to participate, 313 Dutch pharmacists ranked statements, about providing fall prevention, that were presented during a lecture, and 205 completed a survey. To explore pharmacists’ perceptions in-depth, 16 were interviewed. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics. All interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. The capability opportunity motivation-behaviour model was applied to interpret and analyse the findings of qualitative data. Main outcome measure Community pharmacists’ views on providing fall prevention. Results Pharmacists stated that they were motivated to provide fall prevention. They believed they were capable of providing fall prevention by FRID deprescribing. They perceived limited opportunities to contribute. Major barriers included insufficient multidisciplinary collaboration, patient unwillingness to deprescribe FRIDs, and lack of time. Facilitators included goal-setting behaviour, financial compensation, and skilled communication. Conclusion Despite the complex decision-making process in medication-related fall prevention, community pharmacists are motivated and feel capable of providing fall prevention. Opportunities for pharmacists to provide fall prevention services should be enhanced, for example by implementing multidisciplinary agreements.


2017 ◽  
pp. 75-80
Author(s):  
Quoc Duong Doan ◽  
Thi Ha Vo

Background: Community pharmacists play an important role in counseling of rational drug use for population. The study aimed to characterize counselling activities of drug use and demand of counselling tools at some community pharmacies at Hue City. Materials and method: A 17-question survey were asked to fill pharmacy staffs of a convenient sample of 100 community pharmacies at Hue City from 2/2017 to 7/2017. Results: There were 58 pharmacies (58.0%) answered this survey. Cough, headache, fever, high blood pressure and diabetes were the most popular symptoms/diseases presented in pharmacies. Patients often need counselling about dose (82.8%) and when to take medicine (79.3%). The main bariers for counselling were a lack of time (53.4%), and of skills/medthods for counseling (31.7%). About 96.6% pharmacies demanded counselling tools and favorite formats were book (32.9%) or pocket handbook (29.3%). Conclusion: Most pharmacies demanded counselling tools. Other studies should be conducted to develop supporting tools for counseling and to assess the quality of counseling in pharmacies. Key words: community pharmacy, counseling of drug use, pharmacist, Hue


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan van Lieshout ◽  
Joyca Lacroix ◽  
Aart van Halteren ◽  
Martina Teichert

BACKGROUND Growing numbers of people use medication for chronic conditions; non-adherence is common, leading to poor disease control. A newly developed web-based tool to identify an increased risk for non-adherence with related potential individual barriers might facilitate tailored interventions and improve adherence. OBJECTIVE To assess the effectiveness of the newly developed tool to improve medication adherence. METHODS A cluster randomized controlled trial assessed the effectiveness of this adherence tool in patients initiating cardiovascular or oral blood glucose lowering medication. Participants were included in community pharmacies. They completed an online questionnaire comprising an assessments of their risk for medication non-adherence and subsequently of barriers to adherence. In pharmacies belonging to the intervention group, individual barriers displayed in a graphical profile on a tablet were discussed by pharmacists and patients at high non-adherence risk in face to face meetings and shared with their general practitioners and practice nurses. Tailored interventions were initiated by the healthcare providers. Barriers of control patients were not presented or discussed and these patients received usual care. The primary outcome was the difference in medication adherence at 8 months follow-up between patients with an increased non-adherence risk from intervention and control group, calculated from dispensing data. RESULTS Data from 492 participants in 15 community pharmacies were available for analyses (intervention 253, 7 pharmacies; control 239, 8 pharmacies). The intervention had no effect on medication adherence (-0.01; 95%CI -0.59 – 0.57; P= .96), neither in the post hoc per protocol analysis (0.19; 95%CI -0.50 – 0.89; P=.58). CONCLUSIONS This study showed no effectiveness of a risk stratification and tailored intervention addressing personal barriers for medication adherence. Various potential explanations for lack of effect were identified. These explanations relate for instance to high medication adherence in the control group, study power and fidelity. Process evaluation should elicit possible improvements and inform the redesign of intervention and implementation. CLINICALTRIAL The Netherlands National Trial Register: NTR5186. Date: May 18, 2015 (http://www.trialregister.nl/trialreg/admin/rctview.asp?TC=5186)


Author(s):  
James Turner ◽  
Terri Rebmann ◽  
Travis Loux ◽  
Donghua Tao ◽  
Alexander Garza

AbstractEmergency planners and first responders often access web-based information resources during disasters; however, these tools require an active Internet connection, which may be unavailable during a disaster. The National Library of Medicine (NLM) provides several free non-web-based disaster response tools. This study assessed intention to use web-based and non-web-based informational and response tools during disasters among emergency responders and librarians. Educational workshops were held in four Missouri cities in spring, 2016. The NLM tools were presented and attendees practiced using the tools during disaster scenarios. Pre- and post-intervention data about NLM tool awareness and intention to use these tools versus other web-based resources was collected. McNemar tests assessed a pre/post change in intention to use each resource. Four workshops were held, with a total of 74 attendees. Intention to use the NLM tools was low prior to the workshops (range: 20.3–39.2%), but increased significantly immediately afterwards (p < .001 for all pre/post comparisons). The workshops resulted in increased NLM tool awareness and increased intention to use the tools during future disasters. This provides evidence of attendees’ perceptions of the usefulness of the non-web-based NLM tools in place of other web-based tools in situations without Internet access.


Author(s):  
Mandeep Sekhon ◽  
Claire White ◽  
Emma Godfrey ◽  
Aliya Amirova ◽  
Åsa Revenäs ◽  
...  

Abstract Objective The aim of this systematic review was to assess the evidence from randomised controlled trials (RCT) and cohort studies for the effectiveness of digital interventions designed to enhance adherence to physical activity (PA) for people with inflammatory arthritis (IA) and describe the intervention content using established coding criteria. Methods Six electronic databases were searched for published and unpublished studies. Independent data extraction and quality assessment (Cochrane risk of bias II or ROBIN I) were conducted by two reviewers. The primary outcome was self-reported adherence to PA post-intervention. Secondary outcomes included self-reported adherence to PA at other timepoints, level of PA or engagement with intervention at any follow-up timepoint. Intervention content was assessed using the Consensus on Exercise Reporting Template and the Behaviour Change Techniques taxonomy version 1. Results From 11,136 reports, four moderate risk of bias studies (three RCTs, one cohort study) including 1,160 participants with rheumatoid arthritis or juvenile inflammatory arthritis were identified. Due to heterogeneity of outcomes, a narrative synthesis was conducted. Only one RCT reported a small between group difference in adherence to PA [mean difference (95% confidence intervals) -0.46 (-0.82. -0.09)] in favour of the intervention. There were no between group differences in any secondary outcomes. Interventions included between 3–11 behaviour change techniques but provided minimal exercise prescription information. Conclusion There is currently limited moderate quality evidence available to confidently evaluate the effect of web-based and mobile health interventions on adherence to PA or level of PA post intervention in people with IA.


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