Abstract
BackgroundCollaboration is the way to deliver the desired health outcome for the patients or service users in the healthcare. Inter-professional collaboration can improve medication safety, patient outcome and minimize healthcare costs. This study aimed to explore the degree of collaboration and factors influencing collaboration between physicians and pharmacists within the public hospitals of Jigjiga town, Somali National Regional State, Ethiopia, 2020.MethodsA cross-sectional study qualitative was conducted among 149 participants in the two governmental hospitals of the Jigjiga town with a response rate of 79.87%. The collaborative working relationship model and the physician-pharmacist collaborative instrument with three main exchange domains (trustworthiness, role specification, and relationship initiation) and collaborative care items were used. An independent sample t-test was used to compute the differences of the mean scores of physician-pharmacist collaborative instrument domains and collaborative care. Separate multiple regression was employed to assess factors influencing collaborative care for pharmacists and physicians.ResultsThis study showed that pharmacists reported higher mean of collaborative care (10.66 ± 4.75) than physicians (9.17 ± 3.92). The multiple regression indicated that area of practice influence both professionals’ collaborative practice. A significant association between collaborative care and the two PPCI domains (trustworthiness and relationship initiation for the physicians; role specification and relationship initiation for pharmacists) was established.ConclusionsThe study showed that the collaboration between the physicians and pharmacists was sub-optimal and the exchange variables had a significant influence on their collaboration.RecommendationPhysicians and pharmacists need to exert more efforts to enhance this collaboration. Further qualitative study might be needed to search for factors affecting, barriers and how to develop collaborative practice.
Highlights
IntroductionInter-professional collaboration can improve medication safety, patient outcome and minimize healthcare costs
Collaboration is the way to deliver the desired health outcome for the patients or service users in the healthcare
Socio‐demographic characteristics of the study participants A total of 149 questionnaires were distributed to the physicians and pharmacists working in both settings (KH and Sheik Hassan Yebare Referral Hospital (SHYRH))
Summary
Inter-professional collaboration can improve medication safety, patient outcome and minimize healthcare costs. Collaboration is the way to deliver the desired health outcome for the patients or service users in the healthcare system [1, 2]. The inclusion of pharmacists in the physicianpharmacist collaborative care model was associated with significant improvements in patients’ medication-related clinical health outcomes and a reduction in hospitalizations [10, 11]. A study in England revealed that clinical pharmacist-physician collaboration saved critical care patients from more than 500 instances of potential harm [12]. Similar findings were reported among patients with hypertension [13,14,15] diabetes [16], heart failure [17] and dyslipidemia [18]
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