Current Issue : January - March Volume : 2021 Issue Number : 1 Articles : 5 Articles
The adherence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2) patients with an individual care plan\n(ICP) is often not satisfactory, nor does it allow for a significant improvement in outcome, because of\npoor accessibility to services, poor integration of pathway articulations, poor reconciliation with the\npatientâ??s life, or the lack of a constant reference person. The purpose of this study was to evaluate\nthe contribution of community pharmacists and pharmacy services in improving adherence with\nperiodic controls in DM2. The study was conducted at a rural pharmacy. A sample of 40 patients\nwas calculated with respect to a historical cohort and subsequently enrolled. Clinical and personal\ndata were collected in an electronic case report form. Pharmacists acting as a case manager followed\npatients carrying out their ICP developed by an attending physician. Some of the activities foreseen\nby the ICP, such as electrocardiogram, fundus examination, and self-analysis of blood and urine,\nwere carried out directly in the pharmacy by the pharmacist through the use of telemedicine services\nand point of care units. Activities that could not be performed in the pharmacy were booked by the\npharmacist at the accredited units. Examination results were electronically reported by the pharmacist\nto the attending physician. The primary endpoint was the variation in patient adherence with the\nICP compared to a historical cohort. Secondary endpoints were variation in waiting time for the\nexaminations, mean percentage change in glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and low-density lipoprotein\n(LDL) cholesterol levels and blood pressure, impact on healthcare-related costs, and perceived quality\nof care. Adherence to the ICP significantly increased. Waiting times were reduced and clinical\noutcomes improved with conceivable effects on costs. Patients appreciated the easier access to services.\nCommunity pharmacists and pharmacy services represent ideal actors and context that, integrated\nin the care network, can really favor ICP adherence and obtain daily morbidity reduction and cost\nsavings through proper disease control and an early diagnosis of complications....
Pain is a common and debilitating condition requiring appropriate assessment and\nmanagement. The consequences of inadequate treatment of pain is well known; however, research\ninvestigating pain management practices and the benefits Australian community pharmacies offer\nin pain management are more limited. This study investigated the knowledge and practices of\nAustralian adults experiencing pain, and their views of community pharmacy pain management\nservices. A cross-sectional study was conducted using a pre-tested anonymous self-administered\nquestionnaire. Participants were recruited from ten community pharmacies across metropolitan\nMelbourne, Australia. A total of 120 participants completed the questionnaire. Most reported that\ntheir pain interfered with their quality/functionality-of-life. Paracetamol was the pharmacological\npreference irrespective of pain severity experienced. Approximately 30% did not believe that visiting\na community pharmacy is helpful in pain management, but many reported their pain management\nknowledge could be improved, yet more than 60% disagreed when asked whether they would\nrather visit a supermarket than their pharmacy to purchase analgesics. More than half believed that\ncommunity pharmacies can and should offer more pain management services. This suggests that\nenhancing the involvement of community pharmacists can help bridge gaps in pain management\nknowledge, which may provide greater positive outcomes for patients experiencing pain symptoms....
Chronic kidney disease mineral and bone disorder (CKD-MBD) is a common complication\nin end-stage renal disease (ESRD). To improve prescribing consistency and patient outcomes, a patientcentered,\npharmacistâ??dietician-led approach to managing CKD-MBD was developed. The purpose of\nthis study was to evaluate if the new approach impacted serum markers of CKD-MBD and medication\nburden, and to evaluate patient satisfaction. A single-arm, preâ??post, mixed-methods study was conducted.\nSerum markers of CKD-MBD and medication data were collected pre- and post-intervention, and a\npatient survey administered post-intervention. Focus groups were conducted, transcribed, and analyzed\nthematically. No statistically significant differences in serum markers of CKD-MBD or medication burden\nwere found. Eighty-seven percent of patients were satisfied with their care, however, 31% were very\ndissatisfied with medical explanations provided to them and 48% felt their allotted time with healthcare\nprofessionals was too short. Four major themes identified from focus groups included lack of privacy,\nknowledge and perceptions of blood work rounds, issues with taking phosphate binders, and areas for\nincreased patient education. Patients would prefer more information regarding their blood work results\nand more time with the healthcare team. Areas for expanded education include renal diet, phosphate\nbinders, and consequences of abnormal bloodwork....
The role of pharmacy in healthcare continues to evolve as pharmacists gain increased clinical\nresponsibilities in the United States, such as the opportunity to prescribe hormonal contraception.\nCurrently, North Carolina (NC) pharmacists do not have this ability. While previous research\nfocused on the perceptions of community pharmacists surrounding this practice, no previous research\nsurveyed all pharmacists in a state. This cross-sectional, web-based survey was distributed to all\nactively licensed pharmacists residing in the state of NC in November 2018. The primary objective\nwas to determine the likelihood of NC community pharmacists to prescribe hormonal contraception.\nSecondary outcomes included: evaluation of all respondent support and perceptions of this practice\nas advocacy occurs on the state organization level and unified support is critical; opinions regarding\nover-the-counter (OTC) status of contraception; and potential barriers to prescribing. Overall, 83% of\ncommunity pharmacists were likely to prescribe hormonal contraception. No differences in likelihood\nto prescribe were detected between geographic settings. Community pharmacists reported that the\nmost common barriers to impact prescribing were added responsibility and liability (69.8%) and\ntime constraints (67.2%). Fewer than 10% of respondents felt that hormonal contraception should be\nclassified as OTC (7.9%). Noncommunity pharmacists were significantly more likely to agree that\nprescribing hormonal contraception allows pharmacists to practice at a higher level, that increased\naccess to hormonal contraception is an important public health issue, and that rural areas would\nbenefit from pharmacist-prescribed hormonal contraception. Overall, this study found a willingness\nto prescribe and support from the majority of both community and noncommunity pharmacists.\nLimitations of the study included a low response rate and potential nonresponse bias. Future research\nis needed to address solutions to potential barriers and uptake of this practice, if implemented....
The frontline pharmacists during this pandemic COVID-19 (coronavirus\ndisease 2019) situation are potentially contributing to saving human lives\nworldwide. The objective of this study was to demonstrate the current contributions\nof pharmacists among the frontline healthcare professionals in the\nmanagement of the COVID-19 crisis across the world. MEDLINE, EMBASE,\nCochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Web of Science, and Scopus databases\nwere searched for this study from March 20, 2020 to May 20, 2020. The\nbasic keyword â??pharmacist and COVID-19â? was used to select studies. Relevant\nEnglish-language studies, guidelines, articles, relevant published reports\nin different online news portals and official web pages of different organizations\nwere searched. Pharmacists in the United States and United Kingdom\nare testing patients for COVID-19 and providing medical advice to patients.\nCommunity pharmacists in European countries are focused on the smooth\nsupply of essential medicines, and working to build awareness regarding the\ncommunity transmission of COVID-19. Hospital and clinical pharmacists are\nworking to facilitate the effective medication therapy management for improving\nthe clinical outcomes of COVID-19 patients. Pharmacists in low-and\nmiddle-income countries around the world have focused their efforts mainly\non awareness-building activities regarding the community transmission of\nCOVID-19, and the mass production of alcohol-based hand-sanitizer. Several\nresources are globally available for pharmacists to improve their competency\nand self-protection from COVID-19. Frontline pharmacists are enthusiastically\ncontributing in the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 from a\ncommunity-to-clinical level worldwide.........................
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