Predicting Pharmacist Intention to Contribute to COVID-19 Management at the Community Level: A Cross-Sectional Survey Study

BackgroundPromoting cervical cancer screening (CCS) is undoubtedly effective in combating severe public health problems in developing countries, but there are challenges to its implementation. Understanding the factors influencing primary care physicians' intentions to provide CCSs to rural women is crucial for the future implementation of screening programs. The aim of this study was to assess the intentions of primary care physicians to provide cervical cancer screening services (CCSSs) to rural women and their determinants.MethodsThis cross-sectional study included 1,308 primary care physicians in rural primary health care, and the data collection tool was developed based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB), which included demographic characteristics, the basic constructs of TPB, and the degree of knowledge of CCSSs as an extended variable of the TPB model. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the relationships between each factor.ResultsPathway analysis found that TPB is an appropriate theoretical basis for predicting primary care physicians' intent to provide CCSSs (χ2/df = 2.234 < 3, RMSEA = 0.035, and SRMR = 0.034). Meanwhile, the structural equation model showed that attitude (β = 0.251, p < 0.001), subjective norm (β = 0.311, p < 0.001), perceived behavioral control (β = 0.162, p < 0.001), and knowledge level (β = 0.152, p < 0.01) positively predicted primary care physicians' intention to provide CCSSs.ConclusionsTPB model, with the addition of knowledge, was useful in predicting primary care physicians' intention to provide CCSSs for rural Chinese women. The findings of this study provide a reference for the government and hospitals to develop strategies to improve the intent of primary care physicians to provide CCSSs.

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Examining Primary Care Physicians' Intention to Perform Cervical Cancer Screening Services Using a Theory of Planned Behavior: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach

Sun

et al. 2022

“…Prescription checkups, management of cleaning protocols, educating patients, and combating fake news due to their communication skills, as well as monitoring medication inventories emphasize multitasking behavior of community pharmacists ( 1 , 39 ). This behavior has been described, however, as dramatically stressful and can disrupt pharmacy practice ( 1 , 51 ). Adjustments in the schedule of community pharmacies ( 32 ), increasing the number of human resources ( 43 ), and prioritizing pharmacovigilance services through interdisciplinary teamwork ( 41 , 43 , 50 ) could minimize fatigue and distress in personnel ( 39 , 43 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pharmacist's Perspectives on Administering a COVID-19 Vaccine in Community Pharmacies in Four Balkan Countries

Turcu-Știolică

Kamusheva

Bogdan

et al. 2021

Community pharmacists expanded their roles and engaged in vaccination services in many countries around the world, but not in Balkan countries. This research aimed to assess the perceptions of pharmacists on involvement in the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine administration in four Balkan countries (Albania, Bulgaria, Romania, and Serbia). A cross-sectional survey was conducted using an online questionnaire that was distributed to community pharmacists across these countries between February and March 2021. A total of 636 community pharmacists were included in the analysis of the survey. The willingness to administer vaccines for COVID-19 (or other vaccines well established in the practice, like a flu vaccine) in community pharmacies is significantly different among the countries: the pharmacists from Albania were more willing to administer vaccines. The factors associated with the eagerness to vaccinate are almost the same among the countries: the lack of training in the faculty classes and the lack of a special place where to administer vaccines. Additional significant factors were found in Bulgaria (pharmacists from independent pharmacies wanted more than the pharmacists working in chain pharmacies to administer vaccines) and in Serbia (male pharmacists agreed more with administering vaccines than female pharmacists). Further national reforms are needed for adopting the expanding role of community pharmacists.

“…Community pharmacists played an irreplaceable role and made substantial contributions to the fight against COVID-19 (23). During the pandemic outbreak period (January to April, 2020), the community pharmacists working in Wuhan city felt that their theoretical knowledge and practical skills were insufficient.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development and evaluation of an online training program based on the O-AMAS teaching model for community pharmacists in the post-COVID-19 era

Shen

Li²,

et al. 2022

BackgroundFormerly, the community pharmacists' work was mainly focused on drug supply. However, during the COVID-19 epidemic outbreak, community pharmacists in Wuhan played an important role in control and prevention of SARS-CoV-2 and in providing pharmaceutical care. Due to a lack of adequate knowledge and skills, many community pharmacists were not able to cope with healthcare work timely and efficiently. To improve community pharmacists' specialized knowledge and enhance their professional competence through systemic training in the post-COVID-19 era.MethodsBased on the O-AMAS (Objective, Activation, Multi-learning, Assessment and Summary) teaching model and flipped classroom, an online continuing training program containing four sections was developed. It was a semi-experimental study with no control group. Quantitative tests before and after training as well as questionnaire were used to evaluate the outcome of this training program for community pharmacists.ResultsA total of twenty-six community pharmacists were invited to participate in continuing education, and twenty-five trainees finished this training program with a completion rate of 96.2 %. Quantitative tests before and after training and anonymous questionnaires were carried out to comprehensively evaluate the outcomes of this training program. Compared with the test scores before training (61.6 ± 6.6), the score after training was statistically higher, reaching 80.9 ± 7.5 (P < 0.001). Twenty-three questionnaires were received (returns ratio, 92.0%). Notably, most of the pharmacists were satisfied with the training program. The percentage of positive responses for each item in this anonymous questionnaire was more than 85 %.ConclusionIt was suggested that the O-AMAS model and the flipped classroom-based continuing educational program achieved the expected training effects. It is a promising on-the-job training approach for pharmacy continuing education. Moreover, our study also demonstrated that online learning had advantages of no geographic constraints, flexible learning beyond time and easy interaction, over traditional face-to-face training style, especially in the post-pandemic era.