Background: In the last decades, the provision of pharmaceutical care by community pharmacists has developed\r\nin OECD countries. These developments involved significant changes in professional practices and organization of\r\nprimary care. In France, they have recently been encouraged by a new legal framework and favored by an\r\nincreasing demand for health care (increase in the number of patients with chronic diseases) and reductions in\r\nservices being offered (reduction in the number of general practitioners and huge regional disparities).\r\nObjectives: This study aimed to investigate final-year pharmacy studentsââ?¬â?¢ opinions on 1/expanding the scope of\r\npharmacistsââ?¬â?¢ practices and 2/the potential barriers for the implementation of pharmaceutical care. We discussed\r\nthese in the light of the experiences of pharmacists in Quebec, and other countries in Europe (United Kingdom\r\nand the Netherlands).\r\nMethods: All final-year students in pharmaceutical studies, preparing to become community pharmacists, at the\r\nUniversity Paris-Descartes in Paris during 2010 (n = 146) were recruited. All of them were interviewed by means of\r\na questionnaire describing nine ââ?¬Å?professionalââ?¬Â practices by pharmacists, arranged in four dimensions: (1) screening\r\nand chronic disease management, (2) medication surveillance, (3) pharmacy-prescribed medication and (4)\r\nparticipation in health care networks. Respondents were asked (1) how positively they view the extension of their\r\ncurrent practices, using a 5 point Likert scale and (2) their perception of potential professional, technical,\r\norganizational and/or financial obstacles to developing these practices.\r\nResults: 143 (97.9%) students completed the questionnaire. Most of practices studied received a greater than 80%\r\napproval rating, although only a third of respondents were in favor of the sales of over-the-counter (OTC) drugs.\r\nThe most significant perceived barriers were working time, remuneration and organizational problems, specifically\r\nthe need to create a physical location for consultations to respect patientsââ?¬â?¢ privacy within a pharmacy.\r\nConclusions: Despite remaining barriers to cross, this study showed that future French pharmacists were keen to\r\ndevelop their role in patient care, beyond the traditional role of dispensing. However, the willingness of doctors\r\nand patients to consent should be investigated and also rigorous studies to support or refute the positive impact\r\nof pharmaceutical care on the quality of care should be carried out.
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