Community Pharmacy: an untapped patient data resource

Wright, David and Twigg, Michael ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0910-3850 (2016) Community Pharmacy: an untapped patient data resource. Integrated Pharmacy Research and Practice, 2016 (5). pp. 19-25. ISSN 2230-5254

[thumbnail of IPRP-Community-pharmacies-030716]
Preview
PDF (IPRP-Community-pharmacies-030716) - Published Version
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial.

Download (196kB) | Preview

Abstract

As community pharmacy services become more patient centred they will be increasingly reliant on access to good quality patient information. This paper describes how the information which is currently available in community pharmacies can be used to enhance service delivery and patient care. With integration of community pharmacy and medical practice records on the horizon the opportunities this will provide are also considered. The community pharmacy held patient medication record, which is the central information repository, has been used to identify non-adherence, to prompt the pharmacist to clinically review prescriptions, identify patients for additional services and to identify those patients at greater risk of adverse drug events. Whilst active recording of patient consultations for treatment over the counter may improve the quality of consultations and information held, the lost benefits of anonymity afforded by community pharmacies needs to be considered. Recording of pharmacy staff activities enables workload to be monitored, remuneration to be justified and critical incidents to be learned from but is not routine practice. Centralisation of records between community pharmacies enables practices to be compared and consistent problems to be identified. By integrating pharmacy and medical practice records, patient behaviour with respect to medicines can be more closely monitored and should prevent duplication of effort. When using patient information stored in a community pharmacy it is however important to consider the reason why information was recorded in the first instance and whether it is appropriate to use it for a different purpose without additional patient consent. Community pharmacies currently have access to large amounts of information which if stored and used appropriately can significantly enhance the quality of provided services and patient care. Integrating records increases opportunities to enhance patient care yet further. Whilst community pharmacies have significant amounts of information available to them this is frequently untapped.

Item Type: Article
Additional Information: This work is published and licensed by Dove Medical Press Limited. The full terms of this license are available at https://www.dovepress.com/terms.php and incorporate the Creative Commons Attribution - Non Commercial (unported, v3.0) License. By accessing the work you hereby accept the Terms. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. For permission for commercial use of this work, please see paragraphs 4.2 and 5 of our Terms.
Uncontrolled Keywords: information,patient data,patient medication records,community pharmacy
Faculty \ School: Faculty of Science > School of Pharmacy
UEA Research Groups: Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Medicines Management (former - to 2017)
Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Patient Care
Depositing User: Pure Connector
Date Deposited: 22 Mar 2016 09:23
Last Modified: 19 Oct 2022 08:30
URI: https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/57746
DOI: 10.2147/IPRP.S83261

Actions (login required)

View Item View Item