Patient and public perspectives of community pharmacies in the United Kingdom: A systematic review

Background

The United Kingdom has been at the forefront of enhancing pharmacist roles and community pharmacy services, particularly over the past decade. However, patient and public awareness of community pharmacy services has been limited.

Objective

To identify and synthesize the research literature pertaining to patient and public perspectives on: existing community pharmacy services, extended pharmacist roles and strategies to raise awareness of community pharmacy services.

Search strategy

Systematic search of 8 electronic databases; hand searching of relevant journals, reference lists and conference proceedings.

Inclusion criteria

UK studies investigating patient or public views on community pharmacy services or pharmacist roles from 2005 to 2016.

Data extraction and synthesis

Data were extracted into a grid and subjected to narrative synthesis following thematic analysis.

Main results

From the 3260 unique papers identified, 30 studies were included. Manual searching identified 4 additional studies. Designs using questionnaires (n = 14, 41%), semi‐structured interviews (n = 8, 24%) and focus groups (n = 6, 18%) made up the greatest proportion of studies. Most of the studies (n = 28, 82%) were published from 2010 onwards and covered perceptions of specific community pharmacy services (n = 31). Using a critical appraisal checklist, the overall quality of studies was deemed acceptable. Findings were grouped into 2 main themes “public cognizance” and “attitudes towards services” each with 4 subthemes.

Discussion and conclusions

Patients and the public appeared to view services as beneficial. Successful integration of extended pharmacy services requires pharmacists’ clinical skills to be recognized by patients and physicians. Future research should explore different approaches to increase awareness.     

The National Women's Health Study: assembly and description of a population-based reproductive cohort

Background  

Miscarriage is a common event but is remarkably difficult to measure in epidemiological studies. Few large-scale population-based studies have been conducted in the UK.     

Assessing observational studies of medical treatments

Background  

Previous studies have assessed the validity of the observational study design by comparing results of studies using this design to results from randomized controlled trials. The present study examined design features of observational studies that could have influenced these comparisons.     

A meta-analysis of health state valuations for people with diabetes: explaining the variation across methods and implications for economic evaluation

Purpose  

To review published studies on the effect of diabetes and its complications on utility scores to establish whether there is systematic variation across studies and to examine the implications for the estimation of quality-adjusted life years (QALYs).     

High ambient temperature and mortality: a review of epidemiologic studies from 2001 to 2008

Background  

This review examines recent evidence on mortality from elevated ambient temperature for studies published from January 2001 to December 2008.     

Modifiers of short-term effects of ozone on mortality in eastern Massachusetts - A casecrossover analysis at individual level

Background  

Substantial epidemiological studies demonstrate associations between exposure to ambient ozone and mortality. A few studies simply examine the modification of this ozone effect by individual characteristics and socioeconomic status, but socioeconomic status was usually coded at the city level.     

Development and psychometric evaluation of a new patient-reported outcome instrument measuring the functional impact of insomnia

Purpose  

The objective of this study was to develop and validate a patient-reported outcome instrument to comprehensively assess the consequences of inadequate sleep for use in insomnia-related studies.     

Feasibility of identifying families for genetic studies of birth defects using the National Health Interview Survey

Background  

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the National Health Interview Survey is a useful source to identify informative families for genetic studies of birth defects.     

The contribution of advisory committees and public involvement to large studies: case study

Background  

Many large studies have complex advisory committee structures, yet there is no empirical evidence regarding their optimal composition, scope and contribution. The aim of this study was to inform the committee and advice infrastructure for future research studies.     

Quality of life among testicular cancer survivors: a case–control study in the United States

Introduction  

Evidence from previous studies has suggested there may be physical and mental changes in health among testicular cancer survivors. No studies have been conducted in the United States, however.     

Causal assessment of smoking and tooth loss: A systematic review of observational studies

Background  

Tooth loss impairs oral function. The aim of the present review was to evaluate the causal association between smoking and tooth loss on the basis of high-quality studies.     

Health-related quality of life of Southern Chinese with chronic hepatitis B infection

Background  

Few studies have evaluated the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of Southern Chinese with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) infection.     

Prevalence of metabolic syndrome with international diabetes federation criteria and ATP III program in patients 65 years of age or older

Background  

The relationship between cardiovascular factors and death can vary with age, very few studies have examined metabolic syndrome in the elderly.     

Applicability of an abbreviated version of the Child-OIDP inventory among primary schoolchildren in Tanzania

Background  

There is a need for studies evaluating oral health related quality of life (OHRQoL) of children in developing countries.     

Prevalence and determinants of hepatitis C virus infection among female drug injecting sex workers in Glasgow

Background  

Few studies of the prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection have focussed on women who work as street sex workers to finance their drug use.     

Use of psychotropic drugs before pregnancy and the risk for induced abortion: population-based register-data from Finland 1996-2006

Background  

Some, though not all studies have reported an increased risk for mental health problems after an induced abortion. Problems with design and data have compromised these studies and the generalisation of their results.     

Tissue classification for the epidemiological assessment of surgical transmission of sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. A proposal on hypothetical risk levels

Background  

Epidemiological studies on the potential role of surgery in Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease transmission have disclosed associations with history of specific surgical interventions or reported negative results.     

Long-term particulate matter exposure and mortality: a review of European epidemiological studies

Background  

Several studies considered the relation between long-term exposure to particulate matter (PM) and total mortality, as well as mortality from cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. Our aim was to provide a comprehensive review of European epidemiological studies on the issue.     

Exposure of hairdressing apprentices to airborne hazardous substances

Background  

Few studies have investigated exposure of hairdressing apprentices to airborne irritants. This study describes exposure levels of apprentices to chemical products used in hairdressing salons in relation with their activity.     

Effectiveness of hygienic-dietary recommendations as enhancers of antidepressant treatment in patients with Depression: Study protocol of a randomized controlled trial

Background  

In recent years some studies have been published supporting the efficacy of light exposure, physical activity, sleep control and a Mediterranean diet pattern on the improvement or prevention of Depression. However, to our knowledge, there have been no studies using all these measures together as an adjuvant antidepressant strategy.