Factors associated with how often community pharmacists offer and dispense naloxone

A recent Surgeon General's report encourages people to ask pharmacists about naloxone, but whether pharmacists are well-prepared to respond to these requests is unclear.

Determine factors that are associated with how often pharmacists offer and dispense naloxone.

A convenience sample of 457 community pharmacists in North Carolina completed a 5-min online survey. Linear regressions were conducted to identify factors that are associated with how often pharmacists offer and dispense naloxone. Pharmacists' self-reported barriers to teaching naloxone administration were identified.

Most pharmacists (81.2%) worked in pharmacies that stocked naloxone, but many never offered (36.6%) or dispensed (19.4%) naloxone. Pharmacists offered (β = 0.15, p < 0.01) and dispensed (β = 0.15, p < 0.01) naloxone more often when their pharmacy stocked more naloxone formulations. Pharmacists who were more comfortable discussing naloxone offered it more often (β = 0.26, p = 0.001). Pharmacists who worked in regional/local/grocery chain pharmacies dispensed and offered naloxone less often than other pharmacy types. Barriers to teaching naloxone administration included: time constraints, inadequate training, and perceived lack of patient comprehension.

Many community pharmacists do not offer or dispense naloxone. Pharmacists who are uncomfortable discussing naloxone or work at smaller chain pharmacies may benefit from targeted naloxone training.