Pharmacists In Primary Health Care Research Articles

Primary Healthcare Pharmacists' Perceived Organizational Support and Turnover Intention: Do Gender Differences Exist?

This study aims to explore the relationship between the four-dimensional structured perceived organizational support (emotional support, instrumental support, supervisor support, and coworker support) and the turnover intention of pharmacists in primary healthcare institutions. The gender differences between perceived organizational support and turnover intention will also be examined. A cross-sectional study was conducted in primary healthcare institutions of 31 cities in China from 2 July to 1 September 2021. And the binary logistic regression model was employed for data analysis. 937 valid questionnaires are allocated from pharmacists in primary healthcare institutions. The regression results indicated that emotional support (b=0.073, p<0.001) has a significant influence on pharmacists' turnover intention, and the effect of supervisor support (b=0.173, p=0.046) on pharmacists' turnover intention differs by gender. These findings offer suggestions for the management and stabilization of pharmacists in primary healthcare institutions. It is suggested that specific measures should be taken to increase pharmacists' perceived organizational support and reduce their turnover intention. At the same time, gender differences need to be taken into consideration by the managers when providing perceived organizational support to reduce their turnover intention through adaptive management.

Effect of Pharmacist Intervention on Medication Adherence and Clinical Outcomes of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Outpatients in Primary Healthcare in Indonesia.

Objective:In Indonesia, the role of pharmacists in primary healthcare is still very limited or even absent. This study evaluates the effectiveness of programs delivered for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients by pharmacists in primary healthcare through counseling, short message service (SMS) reminders, and medication booklets.Methods:A quasi-experimental study with a pretest–posttest design was conducted from April to August 2018 at Merdeka and Dempo primary health-care centers, Palembang, South Sumatra Province, Indonesia. Counseling and medication booklets were distributed three times during the study period, while SMS reminders were sent once a week. Counseling was given for the management of diabetes mellitus (DM), including during the Ramadan fasting period, together with management for acute and chronic complications. The medication adherence level was measured using a medication adherence questionnaire (MAQ) and pill count adherence (PCA). The study sample comprised 80 T2DM patients, who were allocated into either the control group (CG) (n = 40) or intervention group (IG) (n = 40). Clinical outcomes were determined by measuring glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), blood pressure, and lipid profiles.Findings:After the intervention, the IG showed significant improvements in most parameters, except for high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and systolic and diastolic blood pressure. HbA1c levels were reduced, while MAQ scores and PCA scores were improved. Lipid parameters were significantly reduced total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c), and triglyceride (TG). Compared with the CG, most parameters were significantly improved in the IG. Pharmacist counseling significantly improved almost all clinical parameters (HbA1c, TC, LDL-c, and TG). Pharmacist counseling was 7.1 times greater in lowering HbA1c compared with no counseling, after adjusted by other variables. The variable that most influenced the lowering of HbA1c was infrequent (“not often”) consumption of unhealthy foods (OR 14.9; 95% CI 3.5-63.7).Conclusion:The pharmacist primary health-care intervention program implemented in this study significantly improved HbA1c, TC, LDL-c, TG, and medication adherence in outpatients with T2DM.

Educational Video to Improve Glycemic Control of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients

Glycemic control is a critical point in the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The limited number of pharmacists in primary health care in Indonesia is one of the reasons that a simple alternative method is needed for managing T2DM patients. Objective: This study aimed to measure the effectiveness of an education diabetes video as a simple method of improving glycemic control of T2DM patients. Methods: This was a quasi-experimental pre-test/post-test study involving T2DM patients from one randomly selected public healthcare centre in East Jakarta. Glycated haemoglobin (A1C) levels were examined before and 12 weeks after the video intervention. Results: Thirty of T2DM patients enrolled in this study. The educational video was found to decrease the A1C level significantly (p = 0.001) from an average±SD of 7.930±1.262 to 5.517±0.614. Conclusions: This study found the educational was effective at improving the glycemic control of patients with T2DM. However, further investigation with control group still needed to confirm that the video that did it.

The role of primary care pharmacists in the response to the Zika epidemic

Background:Zika virus (ZIKV) infection emerged in Brazil in 2015, leading to the declaration of a national public health emergency, mainly due to its consequences for pregnant women and newborn babies. The Zika epidemic demanded major efforts from the public health system to address the full range of disease consequences.Objective:The objective of this study was to investigate the role of Primary Health Care pharmacists working in the city of Campo Grande in the State of Mato Grosso do Sul.Methods:A qualitative cross-sectional interview-based study with pharmacists working in municipal Primary Health Care services was carried out to investigate knowledge about the disease and involvement in the response to the health emergency. Informed consent was obtained. After coding, the corpus underwent thematic analysis.Results:The data show that few professionals had received specific training in public health. Knowledge largely encompassed disease transmission by the mosquito and collective and individual preventive measures. Findings highlight knowledge gaps relating to signs and symptoms, diagnosis, consequences of infection, and the role of epidemiological surveillance. Most professionals mentioned at least one of the recommendations on the use of medicines in symptom management protocols. The practical implications surrounding knowledge gaps and misconceptions were reflected in pharmacists´ role in response, restricted to counselling on preventive measures. Few respondents participated in institutional groups and committees or in multiprofessional teams involving case management.Conclusions:The study identified important knowledge gaps and showed that the involvement of pharmacy professionals in the response to the Zika epidemic was timid or inadequate. The results also suggest that pharmacists failed to recognize their role in interventions related to the ZIKV epidemic. Findings highlight the need to increase the involvement of primary care pharmacists in community-based actions, for communication and reduction of health risks, and emergency preparedness and response.

Primary health care pharmacists and vision for community pharmacy and pharmacists in Chile.

The Chilean healthcare system is composed of public and private sectors, with most of the higher-income population being covered privately. Primary healthcare in the public system is provided in more than 2,500 public primary care centers of different sizes with assigned populations within territories. Private insurance companies have their own healthcare networks or buy services from individual health providers. Patients from the public system receive most medications free of charge in primary care pharmacies embedded in each care center. Private patients must purchase their medicines from community pharmacies. Some government policies subsidize part of the cost of medications, but original medicines remain as the most expensive of Latin America. Three chain pharmacies have more than 90% of the market share, and these pharmacies have negative public perception because of price collusion court sentences. A non-profit, municipal pharmacy model was developed but has limited implementation. Most privately owned independent and chain community pharmacies do not provide pharmaceutical services as there is no remuneration or cover by insurers. The limited number of publicly owned Municipal pharmacies could implement pharmaceutical services in community settings as they are non-profit establishments and have full-time pharmacists but are not resourced for these services. A limited number of pharmaceutical services are almost exclusively provided in public primary care, including medication reviews, pharmaceutical education, home visits and pharmacovigilance services, but several barriers to their implementation remain. A risk-based multimorbidity care model was implemented in 2020 for public primary care with additional employment of part-time pharmacists to provide services. We believe that this model will help pharmacists to optimize their time by prioritizing the much-needed clinical tasks. We propose within this multimorbidity care model that the more time-consuming services are provided to higher risk patients. Pharmacy prescribing i.e. amending or approving changes in medications in primary care for chronic conditions could also be useful for the health system, but pharmacists would require additional training. The landscape for pharmaceutical services for primary care in Chile is promising, but the integration with community pharmacies will not be possible until they are funded by public and private insurance, and the public perception of these establishments is improved.

Primary health care pharmacists and vision for community pharmacy and pharmacists in Chile

The Chilean healthcare system is composed of public and private sectors, with most of the higher-income population being covered privately. Primary healthcare in the public system is provided in more than 2,500 public primary care centers of different sizes with assigned populations within territories. Private insurance companies have their own healthcare networks or buy services from individual health providers. Patients from the public system receive most medications free of charge in primary care pharmacies embedded in each care center. Private patients must purchase their medicines from community pharmacies. Some government policies subsidize part of the cost of medications, but original medicines remain as the most expensive of Latin America. Three chain pharmacies have more than 90% of the market share, and these pharmacies have negative public perception because of price collusion court sentences. A non-profit, municipal pharmacy model was developed but has limited implementation. Most privately owned independent and chain community pharmacies do not provide pharmaceutical services as there is no remuneration or cover by insurers. The limited number of publicly owned Municipal pharmacies could implement pharmaceutical services in community settings as they are non-profit establishments and have full-time pharmacists but are not resourced for these services. A limited number of pharmaceutical services are almost exclusively provided in public primary care, including medication reviews, pharmaceutical education, home visits and pharmacovigilance services, but several barriers to their implementation remain. A risk-based multimorbidity care model was implemented in 2020 for public primary care with additional employment of part-time pharmacists to provide services. We believe that this model will help pharmacists to optimize their time by prioritizing the much-needed clinical tasks. We propose within this multimorbidity care model that the more time-consuming services are provided to higher risk patients. Pharmacy prescribing i.e. amending or approving changes in medications in primary care for chronic conditions could also be useful for the health system, but pharmacists would require additional training. The landscape for pharmaceutical services for primary care in Chile is promising, but the integration with community pharmacies will not be possible until they are funded by public and private insurance, and the public perception of these establishments is improved.

Ética e assistência farmacêutica na atenção básica: desafios cotidianos

Resumo Este estudo buscou identificar e discutir problemas éticos vivenciados por farmacêuticos na atenção básica à saúde. Os dados foram coletados por meio de entrevistas semiestruturadas com 19 farmacêuticos, no município de Florianópolis/SC. O conteúdo das falas foi analisado por abordagem temático-categorial, à luz de referenciais teóricos da bioética. Identificaram-se dez problemas éticos ligados à dimensão política do trabalho e da produção do cuidado, envolvendo questões relativas à estrutura dos serviços, a processos de gestão e à forma de organização da atenção à saúde. Conclui-se que a análise ética comprometida com a resolução dos problemas apontados é importante estratégia para qualificar os serviços farmacêuticos na atenção básica à saúde.

Autoethnography as an Instrument for Professional (Trans) Formation in Pharmaceutical Care Practice

The recent inclusion of pharmacists in primary healthcare in Brazil through the Family Health Support Team has encouraged them to reflect on the need to change from a professional focused on medications to one focused on individuals. This autoethnography allowed a pharmacist to confront her perspectives on clinical practice between 2014 and 2016, a period when she decided to challenge her traditional training as a pharmacist centered on medications. Using pharmaceutical care practice as the theoretical framework that prompted the profession of pharmacy to change its focus to the patient, the authors collaborated to construct a monologue that engages readers in the meanings of becoming patient centered. The research findings also support the versatility of application of the reflective process provided by autoethnography. Through fieldwork, reflective writing and interviews, the pharmacist discovered a new way to relate to "caring" and "patients" in her daily routine.

Beyond the four walls: an exploratory survey of location, employment and roles of pharmacists in primary health care.

INTRODUCTION Recognition of the need to reduce harm and optimise patient outcomes from the use of medicines is contributing to an evolution of pharmacy practice in primary health care internationally. This evolution is changing community pharmacy and leading to new models of care that enable pharmacist contribution beyond traditional realms. There is little information about the extent of these changes in New Zealand. AIM The aim of this study was to investigate emerging roles of pharmacists in primary health care. METHODS A 10-question electronic survey was used to collect quantitative data about location, employment and roles of pharmacists practising in primary health care. RESULTS There were 467 survey responses. Although most pharmacists are employed by (78%, n = 357/458) and located in (84%, n = 393/467) community pharmacies, small numbers are dispersed widely across the primary health care sector. Of the 7% (n = 31/467) working in general practices, most are employed by Primary Health Organisations or District Health Boards. Limited cognitive pharmacy service provision is evident in the sector overall, but is much greater for pharmacists spending time located within general practices. DISCUSSION The large proportion of pharmacists practising in community pharmacies emphasises the importance of the Community Pharmacy Services Agreement in facilitating increased cognitive pharmacy service provision to optimise patient outcomes. The small numbers of pharmacists located elsewhere in the primary health care sector suggest there is scope to improve collaboration and integration in these areas. Flexible funding models that promote innovation and support sustainable practice change are key.

Assessment of Knowledge, Attitude and Practices of Adverse Drug Reaction Reporting among Doctors and Pharmacists in Primary Healthcare

Background: Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are global problems of major concern. Healthcare professional's knowledge and attitudes to ADR and ADR reporting play vital role to report any cases of ADR. Positive attitudes may favour ADR reporting practices by healthcare professionals. Objective: This study was aimed to investigate the KAP towards ADR reporting among HCPs working at primary outpatient care in Kuala Muda District Health Office, Kedah, Malaysia. Methodology: A cross sectional study was done by survey using a self-administered structured questionnaire. The questionnaire was distributed to all healthcare professionals working at primary outpatient care in Kuala Muda District Health Office, Kedah, Malaysia. Result and Discussion: The overall response rate was 87.4%. The mean knowledge score was 66.9% ± 19.86 for doctors and 76.9% ± 13.87 for pharmacists (p=0.03). 43.8% of the healthcare professionals did not aware of the blue card reporting system in Malaysia. Almost all of the respondents agreed that ADR reporting should be made mandatory and they recognized that it's their professional obligation to report any ADR. However, only 51.9% of doctors and 70.8 % of pharmacist had reported. Half of the respondents professed that ADR forms are too complex to fill and almost all of the respondents (90.4% doctors and 87.5% pharmacists) declared that they are lacking of time to fill in the report. 69.2% of doctors expressed that they have not been trained on ADR reporting which was contradicting with the pharmacists (12.5%) (p<0.001). Almost all respondents (82.7 % doctors and 95.8 pharmacists) concurred that ADR reporting should be taught in details to them. Conclusion: Respondents reflected inadequate knowledge on ADR reporting. The prevalence of unsatisfactory practices and attitudes among these HCPs contributed to failure to report ADR even if the ADR was identified. Educational intervention strategies can be introduced in order to promote ADR reporting.

Improving the Quality of Pharmacotherapy in Elderly Primary Care Patients Through Medication Reviews: A Randomised Controlled Study

Polypharmacy in the Swedish elderly population is currently a prioritised area of research with a focus on reducing the use of potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs). Multi-professional interventions have previously been tested for their ability to improve drug therapy in frail elderly patients. This study aimed to assess a structured model for pharmacist-led medication reviews in primary health care in southern Sweden and to measure its effects on numbers of patients with PIMs (using the definition of the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare) using ≥10 drugs and using ≥3 psychotropics. This study was a randomised controlled clinical trial performed in a group of patients aged ≥75 years and living in nursing homes or the community and receiving municipal health care. Medication reviews were performed by trained clinical pharmacists based on nurse-initiated symptom assessments with team-based or distance feedback to the physician. Data were collected from the patients' electronic medication lists and medical records at baseline and 2 months after the medication review. A total of 369 patients were included: 182 in the intervention group and 187 in the control group. One-third of the patients in both groups had at least one PIM at baseline. Two months after the medication reviews, the number of intervention group patients with at least one PIM and the number of intervention group patients using ten or more drugs had decreased (p = 0.007 and p = 0.001, respectively), while there were no statistically significant changes in the control patients. No changes were seen in the number of patients using three or more psychotropic drugs, although the dosages of these drugs tended to decrease. Drug-related problems (DRPs) were identified in 93 % of the 182 patients in the intervention group. In total, there were 431 DRPs in the intervention group (a mean of 2.5 DRPs per patient, range 0-9, SD 1.5 at 95 % CI) and 16 % of the DRPs were related to PIMs. Medication reviews involving pharmacists in primary health care appear to be a feasible method to reduce the number of patients with PIMs, thus improving the quality of pharmacotherapy in elderly patients.

Designing a novel continuing education program for pharmacists: Lessons learned

Rapid changes in health care and the evolving role of the pharmacist, as shown by the recent expanding scope of practice changes in several Canadian jurisdictions, have created a need for additional pharmacist continuing education (CE). Many pharmacists move into these new roles with excitement and trepidation. Some pharmacists may be comfortable communicating with patients but less certain how to document the care provided or how to conduct physical assessments. Some may have had plenty of opportunities to talk with physicians but less experience working with other health care providers. Many know that these new roles will improve patient care and want support and CE to move confidently into this new world. KEY POINTS Pharmacists want support and continuing education (CE) opportunities to move confidently into new roles. Partnership between primary health care pharmacists, professional associations and universities creates high-quality CE programming. Distance education best practices should inform course design and operation. A multi-faceted evaluation framework and soliciting learner feedback contributes to making an already good course even better. POINTS CLES Les pharmaciens veulent du soutien et des programmes de formation continue pour se preparer avec confiance a leurs nouveau roles. Le partenariat entre les pharmaciens prestataires de soins de sante primaires, les associations professionnelles et les universites favorise la creation de programmes de formation continue de haute qualite. La conception et la prestation des cours devraient s'appuyer sur des pratiques exemplaires en matiere d'education a distance. Un cadre d'evaluation a volets multiples et la collecte de la retroaction des apprenants contribuent a l'amelioration d'un cours qui est deja bon. A group of pharmacists involved in the Primary Care Pharmacy Specialty Network (PC-PSN), a joint initiative of the Canadian Pharmacists Association (CPhA) and the Canadian Society of Hospital Pharmacists (CSHP), could see that these changes were beginning to happen within the practices of PC-PSN members and through research initiatives such as IMPACT,1–3 SCRIP, SCRIP-plus and REACT.4–6 The group envisioned a “real-world,” accessible, national CE program that would enable pharmacists to enhance patient care in primary health care settings. This article describes the creation, pilot testing and launch of the Adapting Pharmacists' Skills and Approaches to Maximize Patients' Drug Therapy Effectiveness (ADAPT) CE program. The program comprises 7 online learning modules designed to enhance patient care and collaborative skills, plus a face-to-face workshop designed to provide additional feedback about those skills. Program development began in November 2009. The pilot offering of the program occurred from August 2010 to February 2011 and the program became available to all Canadian pharmacists in August 2011 (www.pharmacists.ca/adapt). It was a challenge to create a rigorous, high-quality program for working pharmacists that was practical in terms of the skills taught and the delivery method. A summary of the ADAPT development and implementation process is provided in Box 1. Lessons learned from the ADAPT experience may help others to develop similar CE programs in the future. Creating the training program framework In 2007, a PC-PSN training subcommittee created a Primary Health Care Skills Training Program framework (Box 2) using content and structure developed for the IMPACT (Integrating Family Medicine and Pharmacy to Advance Primary Care Therapeutics) project.7 Obtaining funding: Creating your luck The initial challenge was obtaining funding to create a high-quality CE program. A development grant provided by the McMaster University Department of Family Medicine supported the proposal development and networking with potential funders. Several meetings were held with representatives from faculties of pharmacy and pharmaceutical companies before the Health Canada opportunity, facilitated by CPhA, presented itself. In July 2009, CPhA worked with the PC-PSN on a $500,000 funding proposal to Health Canada's Health Care Policy Contribution Program to create a CE program for primary health care pharmacists using the arguments outlined in Table 1. CPhA, CSHP and PC-PSN representatives entered into a partnership for the purpose of this proposal. Notice of successful funding was received in November 2009. TABLE 1 Arguments for funding ADAPT program development and evaluation Lesson learned: Ensure adequate unrestricted funding. Health Canada's funding made it possible to assemble the right pharmacists, educators, researchers and project managers to deliver and evaluate a mixed model of online, real-world and in-person CE that is not biased toward a particular product, manufacturer or practice setting.

Pharmacist provision of primary health care: a modified Delphi validation of pharmacists' competencies

BackgroundPharmacists have expanded their roles and responsibilities as a result of primary health care reform. There is currently no consensus on the core competencies for pharmacists working in these evolving practices. The aim of this study was to develop and validate competencies for pharmacists' effective performance in these roles, and in so doing, document the perceived contribution of pharmacists providing collaborative primary health care services.MethodsUsing a modified Delphi process including assessing perception of the frequency and criticality of performing tasks, we validated competencies important to primary health care pharmacists practising across Canada.ResultsTen key informants contributed to competency drafting; thirty-three expert pharmacists replied to a second round survey. The final primary health care pharmacist competencies consisted of 34 elements and 153 sub-elements organized in seven CanMeds-based domains. Highest importance rankings were allocated to the domains of care provider and professional, followed by communicator and collaborator, with the lower importance rankings relatively equally distributed across the manager, advocate and scholar domains.ConclusionsExpert pharmacists working in primary health care estimated their most important responsibilities to be related to direct patient care. Competencies that underlie and are required for successful fulfillment of these patient care responsibilities, such as those related to communication, collaboration and professionalism were also highly ranked. These ranked competencies can be used to help pharmacists understand their potential roles in these evolving practices, to help other health care professionals learn about pharmacists' contributions to primary health care, to establish standards and performance indicators, and to prioritize supports and education to maximize effectiveness in this role.

Assessing pharmacists’ impacts in primary health care: are we asking the right questions?

In some settings, steps are being taken to more fully integrate pharmacists in primary health care as a means of improving the public’s health and reducing drug-related iatrogenesis. Yet, evidence of improvement in health outcomes from pharmacists’ inputs is mixed; the diversity of research approaches and methodologies makes it difficult to reach an overall conclusion about it. A detailed review and analysis of two published articles using different methodological approaches to assess the role of community pharmacists in primary health care, but similarly reporting unfavourable findings regarding pharmacists’ impacts, is conducted. The Randomized Controlled Trials (RCT) design did not account for possible within-group differences in the delivery of the pharmacist intervention, and could not ascertain there were differences in pharmaceutical care received by intervention and control group heart failure patients. The RCT did not include an evaluation of pharmacists’ recommendations to physicians. The qualitative discourse analysis did not distinguish between patients’ response to pharmacists’ recommendations and the appropriateness of those recommendations. Researchers face two key challenges in demonstrating pharmacist impacts in primary care. The first is methodological – and relates to the need to identify, measure and evaluate the range and complexity of pharmacists’ work in conducting medication review and pharmaceutical care. The second relates to the differing levels of status and power of two key players in the field of medicines-related health care – the physician and pharmacist –a relationship whose contribution to ‘negative impact’ studies needs consideration. An appeal for ‘methodological creativity’ in pharmacist impact studies is made.

Threatening and violent incidents in community pharmacies: (2) Implications for pharmacists and community pharmacy services

Abstract This paper reports the second stage of a study into threatening and violent incidents in community pharmacies. The first stage, an investigation of the frequency and nature of incidents, found that a high proportion of practising pharmacists had been threatened and/or assaulted while at work (see p136). The implications of security issues for pharmacists, and how these affect the services they are prepared to offer, are addressed in this paper. Data were collected in semi-structured interviews with pharmacists who had reported one or more threatening or violent incidents. Many respondents described serious events with lasting psychological effects, including anxiety about their own safety and changed attitudes towards clients. Pharmacists' concerns about personal safety influenced them in their decisions regarding the services they offered. Pharmacists felt vulnerable at opening and closing times and believed that services to intravenous drug users increased the risks of an event; many incidents did actually occur at these times and involve this group of people. Concerns about safety and security affected late-night and out-of-hours dispensing, services to IV drug users and domiciliary visits. More surprisingly, pharmacists also reported effects on their general dispensing and advice-giving activities. The role of pharmacists in primary health care is becoming more prominent as the Government promotes community based care and encourages individuals to take more responsibility for their own health. Concerns about safety and security could hamper the continuation and development of professional services. The profession must acknowledge the potential impact of these issues in its aspirations and recommendations regarding its future primary care role.

Evaluation of Community Pharmacists' Involvement in Primary Health Care.

Objective: To evaluate the involvement of community pharmacists in primary health care; determine extent of the pharmacists' participation in curative and preventive services, as well as partially assess quality of the involvement. Methods: A 27-item self-completion questionnaire with 0.92 reliability was administered to 110 community pharmacists in Benin City, Nigeria. Data were collected on a scale that ranged from 27 to 135 with an assumed neutral point of 81 and statistically analysed. Results: Respondents scored 87.92 31.31, and over half (55%) were above the neutral point. This implies a slightly satisfactory but not significant involvement (p = 0.25447). Mean total rating on curative services was 92.6129.6, p = 0.0759 with 58% above the neutral point. Infectious diseases accounted for majority of the interventions. Involvement in preventive services was very poor. Only 31% scored above the neutral point with a rating of 65.6131.05, p = 0.2377. Quality of involvement was 94.7736.18 which was not significant (p = 0.2866). Majority of the respondents (94%) claimed they would be prepared to participate in further training on primary health care programme. Conclusion: Community pharmacists are marginally involved in the primary health care programmes in Benin City and are willing to improve on their performance. Continuing education on primary health care and incorporation of primary health care role of community pharmacists in the curriculum of pharmacy schools might be helpful. Keywords: Benin City, Community pharmacists, primary health care. Tropical Journal of Pharmaceutical Research 2002; 1(2): 67-74

Will the EU Legislation Affect Retail Pharmacies?

Focuses on retail pharmacy in the UK. Current concerns are identified, as is the general trajectory of European Union policy in this area. Consideration is given to the role played by individual pharmacists in primary health care within the NHS. Considers the potential for differential impact of the European Union proposals and draws attention to possible competitive consequences.