Abstract
The Pharmaceutical Assistance Cycle (PA) is the basis for healthcare services through which pharmaceutical assistance and expertise can be implemented in a functional and structured way to meet public health demands, adhere to the Brazilian Ministry of Health vision, and strike a balance in the contemporary struggle for health equity. The aim of this research is to analyze the effectiveness of the PA cycle in the city of Romelândia (SC), through a study conducted at a Primary Healthcare Unit in the municipality. For the study, 120 patients (service users) and seven healthcare professionals were interviewed. The majority of patients confirmed that they were given advice and instruction on dosage during the dispensing process, as well as advice on the recommended use of medicines and course duration. A small number of service users, 4.1%, said that they received instructions on adverse drug interactions; 36.6% commented on a lack of access to medicines available in the municipal pharmacy, and 71.4% of the health professionals interviewed, identified non-availability of medicines in the pharmacy as the most pressing and telling problem facing the service. There is also no local Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee, and the only selection criteria is the Ministry of Health essential medicines list. Our study has therefore identified several weaknesses facing the city healthcare service, namely: the shortage of medicines; a lack of resolute professional communication between pharmacist and service user; a lack of patient counseling during the dispensing process, and a lack of communication regarding patient follow-up treatment and wellbeing.
Highlights
The aim of our study was to assess the current status of Pharmaceutical Assistance (PA) in Romelândia, a town located in the western region of Santa Catarina State
Attention is given to the PA cycle, the services and delivery, as well the difficulties the healthcare team faces with implementing PA and dispensing medicines
The majority of service users were from rural areas (77.5%): 75.8% were farmers, who collected medication on a monthly basis (56.6%)
Summary
The aim of our study was to assess the current status of Pharmaceutical Assistance (PA) in Romelândia, a town located in the western region of Santa Catarina State. We assess the opinion of health service users on the role of the pharmacist in giving medication advice. Law 8080/90 gives particular importance to pharmacotherapeutic procedures and activities directly involving or linked to pharmaceutical services (Brazil, 1990). According to the Ministry of Health, “Pharmaceutical Assistance concerns the drug-related activities which support healthcare services demanded by a community. This involves the supply of medicines in each and every constituent step: storage, quality control, safety, and therapeutic efficacy of drugs; monitoring and assessment of usage; provision and dissemination of drug information; and the continuing education of healthcare professionals, patients, and the community to ensure the rational use of medicines” (Brazil, 1998)
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