Pharmacy services and role development in UK general practice: A cross-sectional survey

Savickas, Vilius ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8059-5619, Foreman, Ellie, Ladva, Anmol, Bhamra, Sukvinder K., Sharma, Ravi and Corlett, Sarah A. (2021) Pharmacy services and role development in UK general practice: A cross-sectional survey. International Journal of Pharmacy Practice, 29 (1). pp. 37-44. ISSN 0961-7671

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Abstract

Background: The ‘Clinical Pharmacists in General Practice’ (CPGP) pilot provided a template for general practice pharmacy professionals’ (GPPPs) roles encouraging NHS England to fund >2000 practice-based pharmacists. However, many GPPPs work outside the CPGP initiative and little is known about the services they provide. Objectives: To explore services provided by all UK GPPPs (pharmacists/pharmacy technicians), including the types of services, perceived benefits and barriers to role development. Methods: A 26-item electronic questionnaire was developed using SurveyMonkey and piloted during cognitive interviews. A cross-sectional survey was conducted via social media, primary care organisations and emails to CPGP pilot sites between November 2018 and March 2019. Three reminders were sent 1 week apart. Key findings: Ninety-one complete responses were received (81 pharmacists; 10 technicians). Over 80% of pharmacists provided clinical services, such as medication reviews or management of long-term conditions. More pharmacists within CPGP pilot managed repeat prescribing requests (P = 0.035). Technicians took responsibility for primarily non-clinical roles, including commissioning or safety alerts/drug recalls. A third of GPPPs wished to develop care home services. Perceived benefits of GPPPs’ services included improved utilisation/development of professional skills, identifying medicines-related issues and reduction in medication waste. Respondents were satisfied with professional relationships but reported workload issues, limited patient awareness of their roles and restricted opportunities to contribute to service development, which was associated with unsatisfactory support/mentorship (P < 0.001). Conclusion: General practice pharmacy professionals deliver clinical and non-clinical services which may benefit patients, general practice and the healthcare system. General practices and national organisations should provide GPPPs with tailored support and exploit the combined strengths of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians to tackle increased workload.

Item Type: Article
Additional Information: Funding information: This work was supported by the Faculty of Science Research Funding, University of Kent.
Uncontrolled Keywords: general practice,health services,pharmacists,pharmacy technicians,primary care,medicine(all) ,/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/2700
Faculty \ School: Faculty of Science > School of Chemistry, Pharmacy and Pharmacology
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Depositing User: LivePure Connector
Date Deposited: 22 Nov 2024 11:30
Last Modified: 29 Nov 2024 01:52
URI: https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/97754
DOI: 10.1111/ijpp.12653

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