Community Pharmacy Minor Ailment Services

A special issue of Pharmacy (ISSN 2226-4787).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2020) | Viewed by 25799

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
School of Pharmacy, Newcastle University, Newcastle NE1 7RU, UK
Interests: health service; pharmacy education research

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Community pharmacy minor ailment services are of current interest in many Western countries, including the UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Historically, these services have lacked standardised structural and implementation characteristics that have impeded more widespread adoption. The management of minor illness remains a topic of healthcare interest, as health-seeking behaviours of patients and the public are reaching unprecedented levels causing significant and, in many cases, inappropriate burdens on the range of healthcare services available. Specifically in England, a new Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework has been negotiated that commits to financially supporting community pharmacy in the delivery of new clinical services, one of which includes the promotion of community pharmacy in the management of minor illness. The aim is to better capitalise on the expertise and resource in community pharmacy and thus shift demand away from the overburdened urgent and emergency care sector. This context provides the backdrop for this Special Issue on Community Pharmacy Minor Ailment Services, where researchers are invited to contribute to the debates, evidence and innovations in this area.

Dr. Hamde Nazar
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • Minor conditions
  • Minor ailments
  • Minor illness
  • Low acuity conditions
  • Self-care

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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18 pages, 929 KiB  
Communication
Pharmacist Prescribing for Minor Ailments Service Development: The Experience in Ontario
by Nardine Nakhla and Anastasia Shiamptanis
Pharmacy 2021, 9(2), 96; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmacy9020096 - 27 Apr 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 9576
Abstract
To date, eight of ten Canadian provinces have authorized pharmacists to prescribe for minor ailments. Prompted by a request by the Ontario Minister of Health, draft regulations were submitted to enable this pharmacy service in Ontario. Differences exist in how jurisdictions have approached [...] Read more.
To date, eight of ten Canadian provinces have authorized pharmacists to prescribe for minor ailments. Prompted by a request by the Ontario Minister of Health, draft regulations were submitted to enable this pharmacy service in Ontario. Differences exist in how jurisdictions have approached development and delivery of these programs. This paper will summarize key differences and similarities among existing programs while highlighting the multi-pronged approach utilized by Ontario. Such an approach involved broad stakeholder engagement, implementation science, and an evaluations framework to guide an assessment of the impact of this new service. These insights can be leveraged by other jurisdictions planning to initiate or evolve their minor ailment prescribing services. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Community Pharmacy Minor Ailment Services)
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12 pages, 472 KiB  
Article
Improving Management of Respiratory Tract Infections in Community Pharmacies and Promoting Antimicrobial Stewardship: A Cluster Randomised Control Trial with a Self-Report Behavioural Questionnaire and Process Evaluation
by Diane Ashiru-Oredope, Anne Doble, Tracey Thornley, Ayoub Saei, Natalie Gold, Anna Sallis, Cliodna A M McNulty, Donna Lecky, Eno Umoh and Chaamala Klinger
Pharmacy 2020, 8(1), 44; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmacy8010044 - 19 Mar 2020
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 4250
Abstract
In England, 81% of all antibiotic prescriptions originate in primary care/community settings, of which up to 20% are thought to be inappropriate. Community pharmacies are often the first point of community contact for patients with suspected infections; providing an opportunity for community pharmacy [...] Read more.
In England, 81% of all antibiotic prescriptions originate in primary care/community settings, of which up to 20% are thought to be inappropriate. Community pharmacies are often the first point of community contact for patients with suspected infections; providing an opportunity for community pharmacy teams to promote antimicrobial stewardship (AMS). The objective of the study was to improve the management of infections and antimicrobial stewardship in community pharmacies. The study methodology included a non-blinded cluster randomised control trial with pharmacy staff in 272 community pharmacies in England. The intervention arm received an AMS webinar and a patient facing respiratory tract infection (RTI) leaflet (TARGET TYI-RTI) for use in everyday practice for four weeks. The control arm received a webinar on how to participate in the study. The primary outcome was self-reported referrals to general practitioners (GPs). The secondary outcomes were; provision of self-care advice/ written information to patients, referrals to pharmacists, sign-posting to non-prescription medicines and common barriers and facilitators to advice-giving in community pharmacies. Ethics approval was granted by the Public Health England Research Ethics and Governance Group. 66.91% (182 of 272) of pharmacies provided 3649 patient consultation data reports across both arms. Use of the leaflet was associated with a lower likelihood of referrals to GPs for certain RTIs (p < 0.05) and a more frequent provision of self-care advice than the control (p = 0.06). Opportunities to deliver self-care advice were limited due to lack of time. Pharmacy staff had good motivation and capability for managing self-limiting infections but the opportunity to do so was a perceived barrier. Use of the TARGET leaflet facilitated pharmacy staff to give more self-care advice and decreased referrals to GPs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Community Pharmacy Minor Ailment Services)
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Other

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8 pages, 859 KiB  
Perspective
Integrative Nutrition CARE in the Community—Starting with Pharmacists
by Chun-Wai Mai, Jennifer See Hui Tan, Gina Wan Lee Koay and Lucas Yang Xian Lim
Pharmacy 2020, 8(3), 170; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmacy8030170 - 13 Sep 2020
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 5640
Abstract
Dietary supplementation is increasingly sought after by consumers looking to meet the demands of a modern lifestyle. Effective supplementation requires knowledge of the purpose and proper use of nutritional supplements. Unverified or inadequate guidance on supplementation can propagate misconceptions and increase undue fears [...] Read more.
Dietary supplementation is increasingly sought after by consumers looking to meet the demands of a modern lifestyle. Effective supplementation requires knowledge of the purpose and proper use of nutritional supplements. Unverified or inadequate guidance on supplementation can propagate misconceptions and increase undue fears of side effects. Community pharmacists are best placed to guide consumers on nutritional supplement use. In this review, a panel comprised of community pharmacists, pharmacy academia, and dietitians (n = 6) convened to provide an experience- and evidence-based guidance on rational drug use, patient education, and integrated and personalized nutrition care in both community and hospital pharmacy settings. A novel framework to guide community pharmacist-led consultations on supplementation is proposed. The four-step CARE (Categorize, Assess, Recommend, Empower) guide was developed to facilitate and optimize outcomes of pharmacist-led nutritional supplement consultation. Telehealth advancements in the form of digital health applications and personalized nutrigenomic DNA testing support Integrative Nutrition Care, and will further promote appropriate supplementation use to improve overall well-being in the community. Practical implementation of the CARE guide is necessary to ascertain its applicability for optimizing outcomes of pharmacist-led consultation and the recommendation of nutritional supplements. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Community Pharmacy Minor Ailment Services)
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11 pages, 202 KiB  
Letter
Pharmacist Prescriptive Authority: Lessons from Idaho
by Alex J. Adams
Pharmacy 2020, 8(3), 112; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmacy8030112 - 8 Jul 2020
Cited by 23 | Viewed by 5682
Abstract
Pharmacist prescriptive authority continues to increase at the state level in the United States. Recently, the Idaho Board of Pharmacy (BOP) finalized regulations that expanded autonomous prescriptive authority in its state to a range of preventative care as well as acute and chronic [...] Read more.
Pharmacist prescriptive authority continues to increase at the state level in the United States. Recently, the Idaho Board of Pharmacy (BOP) finalized regulations that expanded autonomous prescriptive authority in its state to a range of preventative care as well as acute and chronic conditions. This manuscript reviews the key decision points made by the BOP regarding drug categories included, education requirements, protocols, access to data, and use of standards of care. Overall, Idaho’s approach closely reflects the medical model of regulation and may prove useful to other states and jurisdictions as they consider similar issues. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Community Pharmacy Minor Ailment Services)
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