| Abstract [eng] |
Raminta Černiauskė, Master’s thesis is titled „Pharmacists opinion on the new pharmaceutical care service for the continuous dispensing (sale) of prescription drugs: opportunities and challenges“. Supervisor assoc. prof. dr. Jonas Grincevičius, Vilnius University, Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Biosciences (Center of Pharmacy and Pharmacology). Aim: Assess pharmacists’ opinion on the new pharmaceutical care service for the continuous dispensing (sale) of prescription drugs. Objectives: 1. To assess pharmacists’ opinions on the anticipated features of the provision of new pharmaceutical care service for the continuous dispensing (sale) of prescription drugs; 2. To determine pharmacists’ opinions on the opportunities and benefits for patients arising from the introduction of a pharmaceutical care service for the continuous dispensing (sale) of prescription drugs; 3. To determine pharmacists’ opinions on the challenges and barriers hindering the implementation of a pharmaceutical care service for the continuous dispensing (sale) of prescription drugs. Methods: The empirical data of the qualitative study were analyzed using thematic analysis, combining deductive and inductive approaches. The research instrument was a structured interview. Open-ended questions were asked to pharmacists working in community pharmacies. The interviews were conducted via the “Microsoft Teams” platform, and the conversations were recorded. Results: The study results revealed that the pharmaceutical care service for the continuous dispensing (sale) of prescription drugs would increase pharmacists’ professional responsibility and workload. Therefore, respondents emphasized proper work organization, and specialized training. The benefits of this service for patients were most frequently highlighted, particularly in relation to improved access to medicines and ensuring their rational use. In addition, it was found that this service could contribute to allowing physicians to dedicate more time to patients with acute or complex conditions. The main implementation challenges and barriers were also identified, such as a lack of knowledge, data availability, personnel, and methodological guidelines, and difficulties in cooperation with physicians. Conclusions: 1. The study showed that the planned pharmaceutical care service related to the continuous dispensing (sale) of prescription drugs would be associated with an increased workload and professional responsibility for pharmacists. Respondents emphasized proper work organization, specialized training, access to comprehensive patient health data in the eHealth system, and standardized counselling questionnaires in order to ensure the quality of service delivery. 2. The study results revealed that pharmacists view the pharmaceutical care service for the continuous dispensing (sale) of prescription drugs as beneficial for patients. This service could improve access to medicines, promote rational use, optimize financial resources, and save patients’ time, while also reducing physicians’ workload related to prescription renewals. This would create opportunities for physicians to devote more attention to patients requiring care for acute or more complex health conditions. 3. The study results revealed that the implementation of this service may be hindered by various challenges and barriers related to a lack of knowledge, insufficient infrastructure and time for consultations, limited patient openness, restricted access to data in the eHealth system, a lack of personnel and methodological guidelines, and difficulties in cooperation with physicians. |
