The case for a shift in pharmacists' activities and pharmacy education

In Japan, pharmacists' activities for the most part consist of dispensing although in some University Hospitals they are directly involved in patient care. In the United States, pharmacists' activities have evolved over forty years in providing drug therapy and have now expanded to improvement in the patient's quality of life. In addition, a six-year pharmacy education program based on patient care is now in place nationally. Furthermore, World Health Organization (WHO) and International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) have made recommendations on pharmacists' activities. Shifting to a six-year pharmacy education in Japan has now been decided, and new approaches are being proposed. For pharmacists to serve society in their role as health care professionals, one needs to examine the activities they are expected to perform and pharmacy education necessary to develop these skills. In this paper, pharmacy education was examined by analyzing and comparing Western countries and Japan, with a focus on Canadian pharmacists' activities and pharmacy education in Alberta.     

Separation of prescribing and dispensing in Malaysia: the history and challenges

This article serves as an update to the work by Shafie et al. (2012) which previously reviewed the benefits of policies separating prescribing and dispensing in various countries to advocate its implementation in Malaysia. This article seeks to strengthen the argument by highlighting not only the weaknesses of the Malaysian health care system from the historical, professional and economic viewpoints but also the shortcomings of both medical and pharmacy professions in the absence of separation of dispensing. It also provides a detailed insight into the ongoing initiatives taken to consolidate the role of pharmacists in the health care system in the advent of separation of dispensing. Under the two tier system in Malaysia at present, the separation of prescribing and dispensing is implemented only in government hospitals. The absence of this separation in the private practices has led to possible profit‐oriented medical and pharmacy practices which hinder safe and cost‐effective delivery of health services. The call for separation of dispensing has gained traction over the years despite various hurdles ranging from the formidable resistance from the medical fraternity to the public's scepticism towards the new policy. With historical testament and present evidence pointing towards the merits of a system in which doctors prescribe and pharmacists dispense, the implementation of this health care model is justified.     

应用PDCA循环管理法提高门诊药房的药品调剂质量

目的适应医院的信息系统,减少门诊药房发药差错,提高门诊药房调剂工作质量。方法采用PDCA循环管理法对门诊药房的药品调剂工作进行管理,目标将药品调剂差错率控制在1％。以下。管理措施主要包括：解决计算机网络系统运行中存在的问题;提高药品调剂工作效率;减少药品调剂差错。每月检查药学人员执行PDCA管理措施的情况,计算药品调剂差错率,并进行分析和评定,检查整改的效果,提出新的计划和措施。结果运用PDCA循环管理后,门诊药房的药品调剂工作效率显著提高,药品调剂差错率降至0．89％。（223／251238）,达到本轮PDCA循环的目标。结论采用PDCA循环管理法可有效减少门诊药房药品调剂差错,提高门诊调剂工作质量。     

Teaching patient-centered care to pharmacy students

The concepts of pharmaceutical care are distinctively different from the responsibilities of dispensing pharmacists and in accordance with the standards of practice of other professionals in the health care system. By taking direct responsibility for individual patient's medication-related needs, pharmacists can make unique contribution to the outcome of medication therapy and to their patients' quality of life. If the pharmacists are to contribute effectively to the new patient-centered pharmaceutical practice they must have the opportunity to acquire the new knowledge and skills required for their new role. To do this they must become life-long learners, one of the roles of the new pharmacist. Therefore, an important outcome for pharmacy education is to perform graduates capable to provide patient-centered pharmaceutical services. The purpose of this paper is to stimulate reflection on the relevance of teaching patient-centered care to pharmacy students, consistent with the practice of pharmaceutical care as a current trend in the pharmacy practice.     

台湾地区医院药学模式介绍及对大陆地区的启示

目的:促进大陆地区医院药学服务质量的持续改进。方法:介绍台湾地区医院药学的相关制度、药品管理(包括药品调剂和医院制剂配制)、临床用药管理(包括临床药学和用药疏失管理及循证医学信息服务)与大陆地区的差异,并提出对大陆地区医院药学工作的启示。结果与结论:台湾地区执行全民健康保险制度,引入总额支付制度;执行医院评鉴制度和药害救济制度。台湾地区医院门诊和住院药品调剂均采取拆零调配模式,调配流程合理且高效;医院制剂配制方面,一般均提供全静脉营养剂配制服务,中草药均为瓶装粉末,对于儿童用药品提供粉碎和分装服务;对于频繁使用且剂量较恒定的品种医院也会委托企业批量生产;单设化疗药房。台湾地区的临床药学工作内容与大陆地区基本相同,药事服务在院内网络上进行记录;医院药师(包括临床药师和药房药师)可随时将各类用药疏失填报至院内网络,填报者能获得院方奖励。台湾地区医疗品质策进会已将医院循证工作开展情况视为质量控制的一项指标,纳入医院的评鉴系统。启示大陆地区需要推动药学服务的信息化、注重临床药学人员的培养与考核、加强人性化服务。     

A learning pharmacy practice enabled by the pharmacists’ patient care process

To address the Quintuple Aim of health care improvement, the profession of pharmacy is on the verge of a practice transformation that incorporates continuous learning from medication-related data into existing clinical and dispensing roles. The pharmacists’ patient care process (PPCP) enables a learning pharmacy practice through the systematic and standardized collection of real-world medication-related data from pharmacists’ patient care activities. A learning pharmacy practice continually generates data-powered discoveries as a byproduct of PPCP interactions. In turn, these discoveries improve our medication knowledge while upgrading our predictive powers, thus helping all people achieve optimal health outcomes. Establishing a practice management system connected to the PPCP means that data are generated from every PPCP interaction, combined with existing data, and analyzed by teams of pharmacists and data scientists. The resulting new knowledge is then incorporated into all future PPCP interactions in the form of predictions coupled to actionable advice. The primary purpose of a learning pharmacy practice is to combine the power of predictive modeling with evidence-based best practices to achieve and sustain population-level health improvements. This purpose is achieved by systematically optimizing individual medication use in an equitable manner on a global scale.     

A conceptual framework for evaluation of community pharmacy pay-for-performance programs

BackgroundRecent interest in initiating pay-for-performance (P4P) programs indicates an underlying belief that economic incentives will have a direct impact on health care quality and efficiency. Evaluations of the impact of P4P programs on health care organizations and providers have been presented in the literature; however, none have focused on the impact of an incentive targeting community pharmacies.ObjectiveTo propose a theory-derived conceptual framework of how a financial incentive might work in a community pharmacy.MethodsStudies from the fields of economics (agency theory), psychology (intrinsic and extrinsic motivators; expectancy theory), and organizational theory (ownership, institutional layers, organizational culture, and change management; quality improvement) were reviewed to inform the framework’s components. This proposed conceptual framework also integrated and expanded on previous health care–related P4P models.ResultsP4P programs inherently use financial incentives to catalyze change; however, elements from psychology and organizational theories along with economic theory were identified as important considerations in how a financial incentive may operate when targeting a community pharmacy. Through the incorporation of these theories along with other P4P frameworks in health care, a conceptual framework was derived comprising 4 domains: incentive, pharmacy, other influencing factors, and P4P program measures. Hypothesized relationships among these domains were depicted.ConclusionAs focus on improving the quality of health care provision develops, opportunities for pharmacists to provide patient care services beyond dispensing will continue to advance, along with expanded reimbursement mechanisms extending beyond traditional product dispensing. The proposed theory-derived conceptual framework serves to depict how the integration of P4P and other factors may affect the pharmacy environment and subsequently affect a pharmacy’s capability to perform well on medication-related quality measures. This framework may be used as a foundation on which to design studies to investigate the association between community pharmacy factors and performance in a P4P program.     

Structural features of pharmacy function--the analysis using structural equation modeling

In order to examine the structural features of community pharmacy function and to clarify areas meriting priority in efforts to expand pharmacy functions in the home care field, a questionnaire survey was conducted. Using the distribution of responses regarding the actual conditions entailed in the 16 categories of pharmacy services, factor analysis was carried out. Structural equation modeling was performed and the fitness of the path model constructed to study the interrelatedness of the individual factors extracted by factor analysis was considered. Four factors comprised pharmacy services "dispensing", "supply of goods", "offering home care", and "cooperation in community health and medical programs". The interrelatedness of four pharmacy functions by the result of structural equation modeling indicated the following insights. 1) By strengthening "cooperation in community health and medical programs", it is possible to directly improve the functions of "dispensing", and "offering home care". An improvement in "collecting and utilizing patient information", "providing appropriate instruction", "providing introductions to medical institutions and physicians", and "supplying over-the-counter drugs" can be expected as a result of direct benefits accrued by "cooperation in community health and medical programs". 2) By strengthening "offering home care", it is possible to directly improve "supply of goods". An improvement in "stocking long-term care goods and sanitary goods" can be expected as a result of direct benefits accrued by "offering home care". In conclusion, this study indicated that the areas meriting priority in the expansion and upgrading of pharmacy functions is stronger "cooperation in community health and medical programs".     

Flexibility in community pharmacy: a qualitative study of business models and cognitive services

Objective To identify the capacity of current pharmacy business models, and the dimensions of organisational flexibility within them, to integrate products and services as well as the perceptions of viability of these models. Methods Fifty-seven semi-structured interviews were conducted with community pharmacy owners or managers and support staff in 30 pharmacies across Australia. A framework of organisational flexibility was used to analyse their capacity to integrate services and perceptions of viability. Data were analysed using the method of constant comparison by two independent researchers. Results The study found that Australian community pharmacies have used the four types of flexibility to build capacity in distinct ways and react to changes in the local environment. This capacity building was manifested in four emerging business models which integrate services to varying degrees: classic community pharmacy, retail destination pharmacy, health care solution pharmacy and networked pharmacy. The perception of viability is less focused on dispensing medications and more focused on differentiating pharmacies through either a retail or services focus. Strategic flexibility appeared to offer pharmacies the ability to integrate and sustainably deliver services more successfully than other types, as exhibited by health care solution and networked pharmacies. Conclusion Active support and encouragement to transition from being dependent on dispensing to implementing services is needed. The study showed that pharmacies where services were implemented and showed success are those strategically differentiating their businesses to become focused health care providers. This holistic approach should inevitably influence the sustainability of services.     

Evaluation of community pharmacy service mix: evidence from the 2004 National Pharmacist Workforce Study.

OBJECTIVES: To describe the mix of pharmacy services being offered in different types of community pharmacy practices and to identify factors associated with a community pharmacy offering pharmacy services. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Community pharmacies (independent, chain, mass merchandiser, and supermarket pharmacies). PARTICIPANTS: Pharmacists practicing full-time or part-time who worked in community pharmacies and responded to the 2004 National Pharmacist Workforce Survey. INTERVENTION: Mailed survey from the 2004 National Pharmacist Workforce Survey, which included core content questions for all sampled pharmacists and supplemental surveys that included workplace questions for a selected subsample of pharmacists. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Type and frequency of pharmacy services being offered in a community pharmacy, including dispensing and product-related services (e.g., specialty compounding), and pharmacist care services (e.g., immunizations, smoking cessation, health screening, medication therapy management, wellness screening, nutritional support, and disease management services). RESULTS: Four pharmacist care services were reported as being offered at more than 10% of community pharmacy practices: immunizations, smoking cessation, health screening, and diabetes management. The number of pharmacist care services offered at a community pharmacy was positively associated with having at least three pharmacists on duty, innovativeness of the pharmacy, status as an independent pharmacy, and status as a supermarket pharmacy. More than one half of the community pharmacy practices did not offer any of the eight pharmacist care services included in a pharmacy service index. CONCLUSION: Pharmacy services were reported at relatively few community pharmacies, and were associated with pharmacy innovativeness, pharmacist staffing levels, and pharmacy setting. Some community pharmacies are offering pharmacy services as part of their business strategy, while others are dedicated to dispensing services. Continued study of pharmacy service availability in community pharmacies is needed to improve our understanding of our capacity to deliver such services, including medication therapy management services.     

Automated medication dispensing: the ATC 212 system.

Innovative technology is currently being designed and produced that will change the way hospital pharmacy is practiced in the future. Automated technology is becoming a powerful component of health care as human resources become scarce. The report describes a technology currently in use at a large general acute care hospital. This new automated system assists the pharmacy department by packaging and dispensing medications to be used in the centralized, computer supported cart-filling process. The ATC 212 System (Baxter Healthcare Corporation, Deerfield, IL) was reviewed and selected as a tool to enhance pharmacy operations. The system has made a positive impact on the unit dose centralized cart-fill operations. A reduction of one full-time technician, a reallocation of pharmacists' time and an increase in productivity and operational flexibility has been realized as a result of the ATC 212 system implementation.     

COVID-19 pandemic: Response plan by the Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare inpatient pharmacy department

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an ongoing pandemic having caused a major health care crises across the globe. Pharmacy professionals are considered vital in preparation for optimal response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, in response to the estimated potential impact of COVID-19 on Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare (joint venture between Saudi Aramco and Johns Hopkins Medicine International), several initiatives were taken by the hospital's inpatient pharmacy department with focus on infection control, staffing, meeting clinical operational challenges, ethics, increased utilization of automation, and maintenance of employee wellness to prepare for this challenge. The plan implemented by the inpatient pharmacy department was prepared while incorporating information and recommendations from leading pharmacy organizations, ministry of health, institute's experience in battling another similar coronavirus (the Middle East respiratory syndrome–coronavirus) previously, and updated scientific research. The key focus areas include development of an institutionalized COVID-19 protocol, measures to improve infection control when handling and dispensing medications, modified staffing plan, system changes in peri-operative areas, keeping pharmacy professionals updated about new and scientific researches, increased utilization of automation, clinical interventions by pharmacist ensuring appropriate utilization of medications while monitoring for drug-drug interactions, adverse drug event prevention, and preparing for handling drug shortages. By implementing a robust plan, pharmacy professionals continue to show that they are an integral member of inter-professional health care teams.     

我院门诊药房的精细化管理探讨

目的：提升门诊药房药学服务水平,降低差错,保障患者用药安全。方法：结合本院门诊药房的实际情况,从药学人员综合素质、药品调剂差错及药品管理等几方面进行精细化管理的探讨。结果与结论：通过精细化的各项管理措施如定期培训、品管圈活动的开展、分类进行药品养护、制作医师联系卡等使药剂人员操作规范、专业知识水平得到提高,药品调剂差错减少,药品质量得到更好的保证,从而逐步提高药学服务的水平。     

有助于提高医院药学服务水平的全自动口服药品摆药机

目的实现医院中心摆药自动化。方法介绍我院全自动口服药品摆药机的主要构造、运行环境、主要功能、工作流程,并将摆药机模式与传统手工摆药模式进行比较。结果全自动口服药品摆药机可提高摆药的速度和准确性,缩短护士领药时间,改善卫生状况,减少药品污染。结论全自动口服药品摆药机适合医院药房使用,有助于提高医院的药学服务水平。