Increased awareness of the service within secondary care is essential for its continual provision. To further optimise the quality of the service provided, training on drugs and conditions covered need to be provided especially for antiplatelets/anticoagulants as none of the Z-VAD-FMK chemical structure surveyed pharmacists provided the NMS for patients who were newly prescribed these medications. Oladapo Ogunbayo, Ellen Schafheutle, Christopher Cutts, Peter Noyce The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK The purpose of the study was to explore community pharmacy’s contributions
in supporting self-care of people with LTCs Current services to support self-care are fragmented and product-centred, and may not fully engage the whole pharmacy team There is a need for more integrated and coherent approaches to delivering support services to people with long term conditions in the community pharmacy Self-care support has emerged as a holistic approach of supporting people with long-term conditions (LTCs) and reducing its burden on healthcare professionals (HCPs)1. Community pharmacy currently provides essential, advanced and enhanced services to support people with LTCs. Community pharmacy’s role in supporting self-care of LTCs is primarily provided through services around medication reviews and medicines management. The overall aim
of this study was to explore the roles and contributions of community pharmacy learn more in supporting self-care for people with LTCs. The study is part of a larger exploratory qualitative research programme involving community pharmacists, primary care doctors and nurses, and people living with LTCs. Community pharmacists were recruited Oxalosuccinic acid by purposive
sampling from England (Greater Manchester) and Scotland (Glasgow, Tayside) between January and March 2013. Participants were selected to allow for maximal variation2 in pharmacy types (multiples and independents), location (urban, rural, supermarket), area (deprived, affluent, mixed) and pharmacist demographics (ethnicity, age, gender). Semi-structured interviews were conducted face-to-face at participants’ places of work or other agreed location. The topic guide evolved iteratively and focused on questions around approaches in managing and supporting people with LTCs, definition/description of self-care, practices and challenges for holistically supporting self-care, and roles of other pharmacy support staff. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and data were managed using the QSR NVIVO software (version 10). Data analysis was thematic using template analysis technique. NHS Research Ethics and R&D approvals were obtained. Interviews were conducted with 24 community pharmacists (12 in England, 12 in Scotland). All participants gave detailed accounts of how they support people with LTCs, and the roles and contribution of other pharmacy support staff.