Andi Hermansyah1, Erica Sainsbury2, Ines Krass2. 1. Faculty of Pharmacy, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Faculty of Pharmacy, Airlangga University, Surabaya, Indonesia. Electronic address: aher7258@uni.sydney.edu.au. 2. Faculty of Pharmacy, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The nature of Australian community pharmacy is continually evolving, raising the need to explore the current situation in order to understand the potential impact of any changes. Although community pharmacy has the potential to play a greater role in health care, it is currently not meeting this potential. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the nature of the contemporary practice of community pharmacy in Australia and examine the potential missed opportunities for role expansion in health care. METHODS: In-depth semi-structured interviews with a wide-range of key stakeholders within and beyond community pharmacy circles were conducted. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analyzed for emerging themes. RESULTS: Twenty-seven key informants across Eastern half of Australia were interviewed between December 2014 and August 2015. Several key elements of the current situation representing the social, economic and policy context of community pharmacy have been identified. These elements operate interdependently, influence micro, meso and macro levels of community pharmacy operation and are changing in the current climate. Community pharmacy has untapped potential in primary health care, but it has been slow to change to meet opportunities available in the current situation. CONCLUSIONS: As the current situation is complex, interrelated and dynamic with often unintended and unpredictable consequences, this paper suggests that policy makers to consider the micro, meso and macro levels of community pharmacy operation when making significant policy changes. The framework proposed in this study can be a helpful tool to analyze the processes operating at these three levels and their influences on practice.
BACKGROUND: The nature of Australian community pharmacy is continually evolving, raising the need to explore the current situation in order to understand the potential impact of any changes. Although community pharmacy has the potential to play a greater role in health care, it is currently not meeting this potential. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the nature of the contemporary practice of community pharmacy in Australia and examine the potential missed opportunities for role expansion in health care. METHODS: In-depth semi-structured interviews with a wide-range of key stakeholders within and beyond community pharmacy circles were conducted. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analyzed for emerging themes. RESULTS: Twenty-seven key informants across Eastern half of Australia were interviewed between December 2014 and August 2015. Several key elements of the current situation representing the social, economic and policy context of community pharmacy have been identified. These elements operate interdependently, influence micro, meso and macro levels of community pharmacy operation and are changing in the current climate. Community pharmacy has untapped potential in primary health care, but it has been slow to change to meet opportunities available in the current situation. CONCLUSIONS: As the current situation is complex, interrelated and dynamic with often unintended and unpredictable consequences, this paper suggests that policy makers to consider the micro, meso and macro levels of community pharmacy operation when making significant policy changes. The framework proposed in this study can be a helpful tool to analyze the processes operating at these three levels and their influences on practice.
Authors: Leanne Chalmers; Petra Czarniak; Jeffery Hughes; Rebecca Iacob; Ya Ping Lee; Kiran Parsons; Richard Parsons; Bruce Sunderland; Tin Fei Sim Journal: Explor Res Clin Soc Pharm Date: 2022-06-02