Abstract
Objective (of the study)
To provide data on the views of chief pharmacists (CPs) and primary care trust pharmacists (PCTPs) on the risks and concerns surrounding supplementary prescribing.
Setting
Secondary and primary care within England.
Method
Postal questionnaire surveys of chief pharmacists and primary care trust pharmacists.
Main Outcome Measure
Significance of the association between the extracted factors.
Results
The response rate was 68% for both the primary care (183/271) and secondary care surveys (97/143). The survey tool was subjected to factor analysis and reliability testing. For both sectors, the three factors that were extracted described concerns over the training model for supplementary prescribing, concerns about the professional competency/responsibility of the supplementary prescribers once trained, and positivity about the implementation of supplementary prescribing. For both sectors, as trusts have more experience of supplementary prescribing by nurses, the respondents had less concerns about the supplementary prescribing training model. For secondary care, as the total number of pharmacists employed within the trust increases, the respondents had less concerns over the limitations of the supplementary prescribing training model.
Conclusion
Although both sectors have concerns over the training model for supplementary prescribing and also professional competence and responsibility once trainees qualify, there is overall a positive attitude towards supplementary prescribing and there is a belief that pharmacists wish to take this role on.
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Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank all of the pharmacists who took the time to complete the questionnaire survey, Dr Jenny Scott, lecturer in clinical pharmacy and pharmacy practice and Dr Marjorie Weiss, senior lecturer in pharmacy practice, for advice on the presentation and content of the paper, and Dr Gordon Taylor, medical statistician, for advice on statistical analysis.
This study was financially supported by the University of Bath.
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• This is the first research to be published on the views of chief pharmacists (CPs) and primary care trust pharmacists (PCTPs) on the risks and concerns surrounding supplementary prescribing.
• This research indicates that there are still concerns within both primary and secondary care about the supplementary prescribing model (such as the lack of clinical assessment during training) and also professional competence and responsibility once trainees qualify. The Department of Health may therefore need to undertake a review of this development in order to ensure that such concerns are not valid in practice.
• Although CPs and PCTPs have these concerns, overall there is a positive attitude towards supplementary prescribing and there is a belief that pharmacists in England wish to take this role on. This underlying support for the role extension of pharmacists is very important in ensuring that pharmacist prescribing achieves its full potential.
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Hobson, R.J., Sewell, G.J. Risks and concerns about supplementary prescribing: survey of primary and secondary care pharmacists. Pharm World Sci 28, 76–90 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11096-006-9004-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11096-006-9004-z