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Collaborative services among community pharmacies for patients with diabetes
Michiel J Storimans1, Olaf H Klungel, Herre Talsma
1Department of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacotherapy, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Scientific Institute Dutch Pharmacists, Utrecht, Netherlands.
The Annals of Pharmacotherapy
|September 8, 2005
Summary
Local collaboration significantly boosts community pharmacy services for patients managing blood glucose with self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) devices. Pharmacies with local agreements offer more comprehensive SMBG support.
Area of Science:
- Pharmacy Practice
- Diabetes Care
- Healthcare Collaboration
Background:
- Community pharmacies can enhance patient care for self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG).
- Implementation of these services faces barriers, with the role of local agreements being unclear.
- Pharmacy characteristics are known factors, but interprofessional collaboration needs further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between local collaboration and the extent of community pharmacy services for SMBG patients.
- To determine if local agreements influence service provision in diabetes care.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional survey was conducted in 2004 among 1692 Dutch community pharmacies.
- Data collected included SMBG services, local agreements, and pharmacy characteristics.
- Logistic regression analysis was used, adjusting for pharmacy characteristics.
Main Results:
- A 44% response rate (724 pharmacies) was achieved.
- Pharmacies with local collaborative agreements for patient counseling or SMBG equipment calibration provided significantly more services.
- These associations persisted after adjusting for pharmacy characteristics (OR 0.26 and 0.17, respectively).
Conclusions:
- Local collaboration and defined roles in diabetes care are independently linked to the number of pharmacy services offered to SMBG patients.
- Strengthening interprofessional relationships can enhance community pharmacy's role in diabetes management.