scholarly journals Public perception of community pharmacists in South Africa: a preliminary study

2006 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Suzanne Bornman ◽  
Ilse Truter ◽  
Daniel JL Venter

This survey forms part of a study undertaken to identify and quantify the community pharmacist’s involvement in the use of non-prescription/over-the-counter (OTC) medicine/self-medication in community pharmacies throughout South Africa. Opsomming Hierdie opname vorm deel van ‘n studie wat onderneem word om die gemeenskapsapteker se betrokkenheid in die gebruik van nie-voorskrif/oor-die-toonbank medikasie/ selfmedikasie in gemeenskapsapteke in Suid Afrika te identifiseer en te kwantifiseer. *Please note: This is a reduced version of the abstract. Please refer to PDF for full text.

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joyce H You ◽  
Fiona Y Wong ◽  
Frank W Chan ◽  
Eliza L Wong ◽  
Eng-kiong Yeoh

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 629-636
Author(s):  
Yiran Rong ◽  
Lori M. Ward ◽  
Seena Haines ◽  
Meagen Rosenthal

Background: Community pharmacists-directed weight management programs have demonstrated positive impacts. Objective: To explore the feasibility of developing a community pharmacy-based weight management program by examining pharmacists’ perceptions of the implementation of such a program in their practice setting. Methods: This study employed a cross-sectional online survey design. The respondents were registered community pharmacists in the southeastern United States. The survey contained 5 sections including demographics and questions gauging pharmacists interest in the proposed program. Survey findingswere examined using descriptive statistics, and analysis of variance (ANOVA). Results: A total of 426 surveys were completed and returned. Over half (53.3%) of the respondents obtained a BSc in Pharmacy. Several respondents were already providing prescription (44.1%) or over-the-counter (OTC) product (30.4%) recommendations to patients interested in weight management. Approximately 35% of respondents were at least somewhat interested in starting a weight management program. Pharmacists self-identifying as practicing in chain pharmacy or rural settings or as being staff pharmacists were less in favor of implementing a program than the other groups. Conclusions: Community pharmacists’ respondents appeared interested in implementing a weight management program. The information gathered herein will be used to design a weight management program specifically for community pharmacies.


Pharmacy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 73
Author(s):  
Liza Seubert ◽  
Whitelaw Kerry ◽  
Hattingh Laetitia ◽  
Margaret Watson ◽  
Rhonda Clifford

Background: Management of minor ailments through self-care and self-medication brings both benefits and risks that can be mitigated if consumers and pharmacy personnel engage in information exchange during over-the-counter (OTC) consultations. Objective: Explore the feasibility of interventions using situational cues to promote information exchange between pharmacy personnel and consumers, during OTC consultations. Methods: Intervention tools were developed prior to conducting the study, in two community pharmacies in Perth, Western Australia. The situational cues included two posters and individual position badges. Data were collected from audio-recording OTC consultations, consumer questionnaires and interviews, and pharmacy personnel interviews. Results: Space required for posters and for researchers conducting interviews was challenging in the retail environment. Pharmacy personnel perceived that the badges positively impacted -consumers’ ability to identify the position of personnel they engaged with. Data collection methods were deemed practical and acceptable. Conclusions: The proposed interventions and evaluation methods were feasible. The use of posters and badges as situational cues to address the barriers to information exchange during OTC consultations was found to be practical, in a community pharmacy setting. There is potential to use situational cues to address other barriers identified to information exchange, to add to the effectiveness of the intervention. With growing emphasis on self-care and self-medication, effective interventions are necessary to promote information exchange to enhance appropriate management in community pharmacies.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3-s) ◽  
pp. 128-132
Author(s):  
Raju Athira ◽  
G Govind ◽  
Mary Johns Irene ◽  
Cyriac Sachin ◽  
Sara Cheriyan Ritty ◽  
...  

Background: The consumption of drugs without consulting healthcare professional regardless of side effects and duration of therapy is known as self-medication. This study was conducted to analyze the practice of self-medication and knowledge about the medicines among the common people of rural areas. Methods:  6 months Study was carried out by collecting the data with the help of questionnaire and thereby collecting their answers. The data was analyzed statistically in terms of actual numbers and percentage. Results:  As an outcome of our survey, majority of the population were unaware about proper usage of medicines. The survey also shows that NSAIDs are the most consumed medicines. 72.11% stop taking medications without the advice or without informing healthcare provider. 77.56% believe medication without prescription will help them. Conclusion: The survey that most of the common population in the rural areas don’t know about the indication for which they are taking medication and the study also emphasizes  the unawareness of common population towards proper usage of medication. Elderly people are on polypharmacy due to multiple and inter current diseases, with their improper use due to lack of knowledge of correct dose, side effects, and interactions would bring serious implications. Community pharmacists should get continuous education and repeated training programs because they are easy accessible to the common population. A proper statutory drug control must be implemented, rationally restricting the availability of drugs to the public. Self-medication is an area where governments and health authorities need to ensure that it is done in a responsible manner, ensuring that safe drugs are made available over the counter and the consumer is given adequate information about the use of drugs and when to consult a doctor. Keywords: Self-medication, irrational use, prevalence, pharmacist, drugs.


Pharmacy ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mira El-Souri ◽  
Rikke Nørgaard Hansen ◽  
Ann Moon Raagaard ◽  
Birthe Søndergaard ◽  
Charlotte Rossing

(1) Background: pharmacy technicians are the largest group of staff at Danish community pharmacies and play a vital role in counselling customers on prescription medication, over-the-counter (OTC) medication and non-medical products. This is the first study carried out to specifically analyse how they contribute to counselling and identification of drug-related problems (DRPs) at Danish community pharmacies. (2) Methods: seventy-six pharmacy technicians from 38 community pharmacies registered data on all of their customer visits for five days, over a four-week period, between January and March 2019. Data were analysed in SPSS version 24. (3) Results: 58.9% of all registered customers (n = 10,417) received counselling. They identified DRPs for 15.8% of all registered customers (n = 2800). Counselling by pharmacy technicians solved, or partially solved, problems for 70.4% of customers with DRPs. Pharmacy technicians estimated that 25.2% of customers receiving counselling (n = 2621) were saved a visit to the general practitioner (GP). (4) Conclusions: as community pharmacists get more involved in complex services, it would be necessary to expand the roles of pharmacy technicians. Pharmacy technicians contribute to medication safety via counselling, and identifying and handling DRPs for all customers. This study documents the role of pharmacy technicians in customer counselling at Danish community pharmacies. It provides evidence to researchers and policy makers to support discussions on the future role of pharmacy technicians at community pharmacies.


2012 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bente Frøkjær ◽  
Tina Bolvig ◽  
Nina Griese ◽  
Hanne Herborg ◽  
Charlotte Rossing

Background: Drug-related problems are known to be a major problem associated with pharmacotherapy. A broad range of studies, mainly in the area of prescription-only medicines, supports this fact. Only a few studies have evaluated drug-related problems with over-the-counter medicine and the role of community pharmacies in this. Purpose: To quantify drug-related problems in self-medication (use of over-the-counter medicine) identified by community pharmacies in Denmark and to document the interventions by pharmacy staff in relation to the identified drug-related problems. Method: A descriptive study mapping drug-related problems in self-medication registered at the counter at a selected number of Danish community pharmacies. Results: Data for 3,868 consecutive customers with requests for over-the-counter (OTC) medicines were registered at 39 community pharmacies. The pharmacies registered a total number of 4,324 OTC medicines requests, illustrating that a customer requested 1.1 OTC medicines on average. Drug-related problems (DRPs) were identified for 813 customers, equivalent to DRPs for 21.0 % of all customers, presenting symptoms or requesting OTC medicines, and for 20 % of all over-the-counter medicines requests. 1,239 DRPs were registered, corresponding to an average of 1.5 DRPs per customer requesting OTC medicines. Community pharmacies estimated that they solved or partly solved 76.2 % of the detected DRPs; 73 % were solved without involving a general practitioner. Conclusions: DRPs were identified for 21.0 % of the pharmacy customers presenting a symptom or asking for an OTC medicine. The community pharmacy counselled the customers with DRPs more thoroughly than other customers by giving 2.4 pieces of professional advice, compared to an average of 2.1 to customers in general. It is not possible to determine the magnitude of the safety risk involved. Based on the most frequent categories of DRPs, there were risks of insufficient effect, unintended effects and, to a lesser extent, inappropriate self-medication.   Type: Original Research


Author(s):  
Hong Chen ◽  
Carolina Oi Lam Ung ◽  
Peilian Chi ◽  
Jihong Wu ◽  
Daisheng Tang ◽  
...  

While patient-centered care is highly anticipated nowadays, investigation of consumers’ perceptions and expectations about pharmacist’s pharmaceutical care when providing over-the-counter (OTC) drugs is sparse. This article aimed to explore consumers’ perceptions regarding the pharmaceutical care that community pharmacists provide in relation to OTC drugs. Semistructured interviews were conducted with consumers recruited (N = 97) in Yinchuan City, China. The 4 main themes that emerged were expectations on pharmaceutical care, attitude toward pharmacist’s competence, experience of self-medication, and suggestions for improving pharmaceutical care. Most participants had high expectations on community pharmacists to recommend the right medicines, to advise them about the effective use of drug, to advise them about the safe use of drug, and to recommend economic drugs. However, their previous experiences at community pharmacy were far from satisfaction reportedly, leading to a general distrust in pharmacist’s certification and qualification, knowledge, communication skills, and attitude. As a result, the participants turned to self-medication based on their personal experiences, their relatives’ experiences, the information on drug label, and the information distributed in the mass media. Realizing the need to improve pharmaceutical care, the participants also made improvement suggestions specific to community pharmacist, community pharmacy, and the government.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Danladi C Husaini ◽  
Yusuf Abubakar ◽  
Lydia Harris-Thurton ◽  
David D. Mphuthi

Aim: In Belize, antibiotics are categorized as prescription-only drugs, and their sales over the counter without a prescription is prohibited. This study assessed the sales and dispensing of antibiotics in community pharmacies without a prescription. Methods: 36 community pharmacies in 4 districts of Belize were assessed for non-prescription sales of antibiotics using a simulated client method (SCM) approach from September to November 2019. Results: The majority (19; 52.8%) of the community pharmacies assessed refused to sell antibiotics without a prescription from a physician. Approximately 17 (47.2%) sold and dispensed antibiotics to simulated clients (SCs) without a prescription. Adequate patient counseling was provided by the pharmacists to the SCs. Conclusion: Some level of lack of compliance with the sales of antibiotics without prescription was observed among community pharmacists in this study. There is a need to reinforce stricter control on the sales and dispensing of antibiotics without prescription in the country of Belize.


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


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