Purpose Patients' safety is a public concern in healthcare systems across the world and should be ensured, among others, by pharmacovigilance based on spontaneous reports of adverse drug reactions (ADRs). Spontaneous ADRs reporting is an important component of the pharmacovigilance system. The role of pharmacists in spontaneous ADRs reporting is crucial in the pharmacovigilance system since it helps to monitor the patients' treatment in real‐life conditions. The aim of the study was to evaluate the pharmacists' attitudes to and knowledge on spontaneous ADRs reporting in Poland and to identify the reasons for underreporting of ADRs. Methods The study was conducted between January 2016 and January 2018. A self‐administered questionnaire was designed and distributed to pharmacists. The pharmacists were randomly selected from the official database kept by the chief pharmaceutical inspectorate in Poland. Results Only 16% (n = 84) of the respondents have ever attended a training on pharmacovigilance. Eighty‐one percent (N = 422) of pharmacists believe that not all synthetic drugs available on the market were safe. Twenty‐eight percent (n = 146) of the respondents were certain about safety of drugs of natural origin, and 16% (n = 84) were of an opinion that adverse reactions following administration of such drugs should not be reported at all. Conclusions To conclude, there is an increasing awareness of the need to develop pharmacovigilance practices. The current (not fully adhered to in practice) model of pharmacovigilance and its associated tools have been developed for synthetic drugs, and applying these methods to monitor safety of herbal medicines presents unique challenges.

Background Ajzen’s theory of planned behavior (TPB) postulates that individuals’ behavioral intention is influenced by their attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. Therefore, it can be used to broaden the understanding of particular behaviors, including healthcare workers’ professional activities. Methods In this study, we used TPB as a theoretical framework to evaluate semi-structured interviews with pharmacists and physicians to build an understanding of the interprofessional collaboration between them. Sixteen semi-structured interviews were conducted with pharmacists and eleven with physicians. The sample of participants comprised a diverse group with varying work experience and workplaces. Data were analyzed independently by two researchers following the thematic analysis method using ATLAS.ti software. Data saturation was set in the absence of new issues arising during the interviews. Results The content analysis allowed for the determination of six main themes: the relationship between previous experiences and attitudes towards collaboration, pharmacist’s role in collaboration, mutual reluctance toward collaboration, the role of decision- and policy-makers, knowledge and qualifications gaps regarding collaboration, and lack of organizational paths. Conclusions Despite both physicians and pharmacists displaying positive attitudes towards collaboration may foster their intention to establish a professional partnership, subjective norms (e.g., the lack of appropriate legal regulations) and perceived behavioral control (physicians’ lack of awareness about pharmacists’ qualifications and the low level of interpersonal skills) might impede the process.

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Pharmacists are regarded as relatively easily accessible, valued for their competency, and often constitute the primary source of knowledge and health assistance (Nakamura et al., 2014;Ooi et al., 2017).In order to meet the current health needs of society, pharmacists started adopting a more patient-centered approach and broadening the scope of their practice (Thamby & Subramani, 2014).Cognitive pharmaceutical services were initially introduced as "the use of specialised knowledge by the pharmacist for the patient or health professionals for the purpose of promoting effective and safe drug therapy" (Cipolle et al., 1998). However, current expectations towards pharmacists include their contribution to public health improvement in a wider context (

The abrupt transition from the traditional model of medical education to online learning caused by the COVID-19 pandemic led to unprecedented changes in the education of future healthcare professionals. This study aimed to evaluate the opinions of Polish healthcare students on the changes introduced due to the COVID-19 pandemic and propose recommendations for improvement. Data were collected from June to July 2020 using an online questionnaire. The results demonstrate that students were generally satisfied with the online learning solutions implemented during the pandemic and appreciated their teachers’ efforts. In their opinion, some of the solutions should also be continued after the pandemic. Students noticed positive aspects of online learning: time efficiency, bigger student-friendliness and unlimited attention from teachers, the flexibility of the learning process, better learning conditions for students, and absences due to illness and other random situations. However, they also noticed its disadvantages: problems with the Internet connection and technical aspects, attitudes of teachers, limited interpersonal relations, limited learning of practical skills, health concerns, students’ engagement and distractions at home, and assessment. To conclude, our results indicate some necessary recommendations to improve the quality of further online learning in medical schools during the COVID-19 pandemic.