Assessment of community pharmacy professionals’ knowledge and counseling skills achievement towards headache management: a cross-sectional and simulated-client based mixed study

Abstract

BackgroundHeadache is one of the most common disabling medical condition affecting over 40% of adults globally. Many patients with headache prefer to alleviate their symptom with a range of over-the-counter analgesics that are available in community medicine retail outlets (CMROs). However, data regarding how community pharmacists respond to headache presentation and their analgesic dispensing behaviors in Ethiopia is scarce. The present study aimed to assess the self-reported and actual practice of community pharmacists toward management of a headache in Gondar town, Ethiopia.MethodsA dual-phase mixed-methods research design, including pseudo-client visits (between April 1 and 30, 2018) followed by a questionnaire-based cross-sectional study (between May 1 and 20, 2018) was conducted among CMROs in Gondar town, Ethiopia.ResultsAmong the 60 pseudo-client visits, 95% of them dispensed medications. The overall counseling approach was found to be 42.6% which improved to 58.3% when the pseudo-clients demanded it. Duration (73.3%) and signs/symptoms (45%) of headache were asked before dispensing the medications. Dosing frequency (86.7%), indication (60%) and dosage form (35%) were the most discussed items. Ibuprofen (45%) and diclofenac (41.5%) were primarily added to paracetamol for better headache treatment. Effectiveness (61.7%) and cost (21.7%) were the main criteria to choose drugs. In the cross-sectional survey, 60 participants were requested and 51 of them agreed to participate (response rate of 85%). Of these participants, 64.7% agreed that managing headache symptomatically is challenging. Patient lack of confidence in dispensers (41.2%) and lack of updated medical information (31.4%) were reported as the primary barriers to counsel clients.ConclusionThis study demonstrated the practical gaps in counseling practices and poor headache management of community pharmacies in Gondar city. National stakeholders in collaboration with academic organizations should be involved in continuous clinical training and education regarding proper counseling practices.

Determinants of community pharmacists’ information gathering and counseling practices during the management of minor ailments

“…On the contrary, gathering of past medical and medication history and allergy history were relatively less in frequency, and this may potentially expose patients to adverse events associated with drug-drug and/or drug-disease interactions. Similarly, the trend observed in the types of counseling information provided by community pharmacists is also consistent with published studies conducted in similar settings ( Kroeger et al, 2001 , Schneider et al, 2009 , Netere et al, 2018 , Puspitasari et al, 2009 ). The observed inadequacy in the frequency of counseling information could potentially compromise patient safety and increase the risks of medication use-related harms ( Eickhoff et al, 2012 , Bosse et al, 2012 ).…”

Dispensing and Variabilities in Pricing of Headache OTC Medicines by Community Pharmacies in a German Big City: A Simulated Patient Approach

“… 21 In an Ethiopian SPM study, although ibuprofen was most frequently dispensed with 45.0%, this was against the background that SPs reported when asked that they were already taking paracetamol without noticeable relief. 22 In a Brazilian SPM study, when asked, SPs reported not taking medicines previously but not getting enough sleep and eating poorly. It turned out that the medicines dispensed and their proportions - with dipyrone or dipyrone and associations being the most frequently dispensed with 70.8% - were again different.…”

Public’s perspectives on guideline‐recommended self‐medication consultations in German community pharmacies

“…Due to the complex mechanism of interaction, however, implementation of the guideline‐recommended consultations in daily practice is challenging (Kaae et al, 2013). Studies continue to demonstrate a worldwide need to improve guideline adherence (Alte et al, 2007; Berger et al, 2005; Brata, Gudka, Schneider, & Clifford, 2015; Brata et al, 2013; Langer et al, 2016; Netere et al, 2018). Therefore, our study highlights the gap between customers' expectations of consultations and the actual current practice of consultations.…”