Latino patients' preferences for medication information and pharmacy services

To examine (1) Latino patients' language preferences for receiving verbal and written medication information in community pharmacies, (2) the types of problems and concerns Latino patients report about using their medications, and (3) the factors that Latino patients believe are important when choosing a community pharmacy.

Individuals were eligible to participate if they were 18 years of age or older, if they self-identified as being Latino, and if they or their children were currently taking prescription medications. All 93 participating individuals were interviewed in Spanish.

The majority of patients did not always receive their prescription labels or written medication information in Spanish. Approximately 52% of the respondents preferred to receive verbal information in Spanish without an interpreter, and 21.5% preferred to receive it in Spanish with an interpreter. Most respondents (70%) preferred written information in Spanish, and 21.5% preferred written information in both Spanish and English. The most commonly reported problems were difficulty paying for medications, difficulty reading the English on the prescription labels, and adverse effects. Participants valued pharmacies with friendly and respectful employees.

Study participants reported many problems or concerns in using their medications, and the majority preferred receiving written and verbal information about their medication in Spanish. Pharmacies need to find better ways of providing services to the rapidly growing Latino population.