A Qualitative Assessment of the Practice Experiences of Certified Diabetes Educator Pharmacists

To describe the practice experiences of Certified Diabetes Educator (CDE) pharmacists in Saskatchewan and determine what impact the CDE designation has had on their personal practices.

A qualitative research approach was used. All pharmacists in Saskatchewan were e-mailed about the study, and eventually, a purposive sampling method was used to select a range of CDE pharmacists. Semistructured, in-person interviews were performed. An interview guide was developed to assess the work activities performed, the benefits of becoming a CDE and the challenges and resultant solutions that optimize their CDE designations. All interviews were transcribed verbatim and coded using deductive thematic analysis to identify the main themes that described the experiences of respondents, with the aid of QSR NVivo.

A total of 14 CDE pharmacists from various communities and work settings chose to participate. All of the participants indicated they were engaging in increased diabetes-related activities since becoming CDEs. All participants indicated they were happy with their decisions to become CDEs and described numerous benefits as a direct result of achieving this designation. Although some solutions were offered, participants still face challenges in optimizing their role as CDEs, such as devoting enough time to diabetes management and remuneration for providing diabetes services.

CDE pharmacists in Saskatchewan report performing enhanced diabetes-related activities subsequent to becoming CDEs and that obtaining this designation has had a positive impact on their personal practices. A larger, cross-country study is necessary to determine whether these results are consistent amongst all pharmacists in Canada.