Pharmacists' viewpoint towards their professional role in healthcare system: a survey of hospital settings of Pakistan
Abstract Background Pharmacy service is an essential part of a healthcare system. The profession of pharmacy is well recognized and is practiced to its full potential in developed countries however, it is underutilized in developing countries such as Pakistan. The recognition of pharmacist’s role as...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2020-07-01
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| Series: | BMC Health Services Research |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12913-020-05459-0 |
| _version_ | 1819112954355777536 |
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| author | Nabeel Khan Ken McGarry Atta Abbas Naqvi Muhammad Shahid Iqbal Zaki Haider |
| author_facet | Nabeel Khan Ken McGarry Atta Abbas Naqvi Muhammad Shahid Iqbal Zaki Haider |
| author_sort | Nabeel Khan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Pharmacy service is an essential part of a healthcare system. The profession of pharmacy is well recognized and is practiced to its full potential in developed countries however, it is underutilized in developing countries such as Pakistan. The recognition of pharmacist’s role as healthcare professional is limited. This study aimed to document pharmacists’ attitude towards their role in Pakistan’s healthcare system, their experience with doctors and their perceptions towards involvement in medicines management. Methods A 4-month cross-sectional survey (Jan – Apr 18) was conducted targeting pharmacists practising in 26 tertiary care hospitals across Pakistan using a developed and validated questionnaire in both Urdu/English languages. Chi square (χ2) test was used to report any associations between independent variables, i.e., education, type of hospital and work experience and, dependent variables, i.e., pharmacists’ attitudes, experience, and perception. A p-value of ≤0.01 with value of Cramer’s V ≥ 0.3 was considered cut-off for establishing statistical significance. The study was approved by ethical committee and local hospital committees. Results Three hundred ninety-six questionnaires were returned out of 500, i.e., response rate = 87.9%. Most participants (92.2%) interacted with doctors at least once daily. Most interactions were related to drug availability inquiry (72.5%). Most pharmacists (91.4%) mentioned that pharmacy duties are mostly clinical in nature. 93.4% of the respondents indicated that pharmacists are reliable source of information regarding general medicines. Furthermore, 87.4% reasoned inadequate training for not being able to discuss issues of clinical nature with doctors. Conclusion Pharmacists were willing to perform their duties and provide healthcare benefits to patients however, they seemed sceptical of advanced clinical pharmacy roles such as intervening in prescriptions and medication therapy, consultations and prescribing. There is a need to increase awareness regarding pharmacist’s role. Therefore, it would be helpful if trainings and seminars are conducted on the importance of clinical pharmacy to improve the pharmacy services in Pakistan’s healthcare system. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-22T04:21:43Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a2e33105f7264654acfd8d2a2ebd0e56 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1472-6963 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-22T04:21:43Z |
| publishDate | 2020-07-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Health Services Research |
| spelling | doaj.art-a2e33105f7264654acfd8d2a2ebd0e562022-12-21T18:39:15ZengBMCBMC Health Services Research1472-69632020-07-0120111510.1186/s12913-020-05459-0Pharmacists' viewpoint towards their professional role in healthcare system: a survey of hospital settings of PakistanNabeel Khan0Ken McGarry1Atta Abbas Naqvi2Muhammad Shahid Iqbal3Zaki Haider4School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of SunderlandFaculty of Technology, School of Computer Science, University of SunderlandDepartment of Pharmacy Practice, College of Clinical Pharmacy, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal UniversityDepartment of Clinical Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz UniversityDepartment of Health and Science Management, Bahria UniversityAbstract Background Pharmacy service is an essential part of a healthcare system. The profession of pharmacy is well recognized and is practiced to its full potential in developed countries however, it is underutilized in developing countries such as Pakistan. The recognition of pharmacist’s role as healthcare professional is limited. This study aimed to document pharmacists’ attitude towards their role in Pakistan’s healthcare system, their experience with doctors and their perceptions towards involvement in medicines management. Methods A 4-month cross-sectional survey (Jan – Apr 18) was conducted targeting pharmacists practising in 26 tertiary care hospitals across Pakistan using a developed and validated questionnaire in both Urdu/English languages. Chi square (χ2) test was used to report any associations between independent variables, i.e., education, type of hospital and work experience and, dependent variables, i.e., pharmacists’ attitudes, experience, and perception. A p-value of ≤0.01 with value of Cramer’s V ≥ 0.3 was considered cut-off for establishing statistical significance. The study was approved by ethical committee and local hospital committees. Results Three hundred ninety-six questionnaires were returned out of 500, i.e., response rate = 87.9%. Most participants (92.2%) interacted with doctors at least once daily. Most interactions were related to drug availability inquiry (72.5%). Most pharmacists (91.4%) mentioned that pharmacy duties are mostly clinical in nature. 93.4% of the respondents indicated that pharmacists are reliable source of information regarding general medicines. Furthermore, 87.4% reasoned inadequate training for not being able to discuss issues of clinical nature with doctors. Conclusion Pharmacists were willing to perform their duties and provide healthcare benefits to patients however, they seemed sceptical of advanced clinical pharmacy roles such as intervening in prescriptions and medication therapy, consultations and prescribing. There is a need to increase awareness regarding pharmacist’s role. Therefore, it would be helpful if trainings and seminars are conducted on the importance of clinical pharmacy to improve the pharmacy services in Pakistan’s healthcare system.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12913-020-05459-0PharmacistsClinical pharmacistsHospital pharmacy serviceClinical pharmacy servicePakistan |
| spellingShingle | Nabeel Khan Ken McGarry Atta Abbas Naqvi Muhammad Shahid Iqbal Zaki Haider Pharmacists' viewpoint towards their professional role in healthcare system: a survey of hospital settings of Pakistan BMC Health Services Research Pharmacists Clinical pharmacists Hospital pharmacy service Clinical pharmacy service Pakistan |
| title | Pharmacists' viewpoint towards their professional role in healthcare system: a survey of hospital settings of Pakistan |
| title_full | Pharmacists' viewpoint towards their professional role in healthcare system: a survey of hospital settings of Pakistan |
| title_fullStr | Pharmacists' viewpoint towards their professional role in healthcare system: a survey of hospital settings of Pakistan |
| title_full_unstemmed | Pharmacists' viewpoint towards their professional role in healthcare system: a survey of hospital settings of Pakistan |
| title_short | Pharmacists' viewpoint towards their professional role in healthcare system: a survey of hospital settings of Pakistan |
| title_sort | pharmacists viewpoint towards their professional role in healthcare system a survey of hospital settings of pakistan |
| topic | Pharmacists Clinical pharmacists Hospital pharmacy service Clinical pharmacy service Pakistan |
| url | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12913-020-05459-0 |
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