Item development for patient-centered care preferences using a three-archetype heuristic: An exploratory study

Area of Science:

• Pharmacy Practice
• Patient-Centered Care
• Geriatric Pharmacy

Background:

• Patient-centered care is central to the Pharmacists' Patient Care Process.
• Little is known about patient preferences and expectations for pharmacist care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and test survey items assessing patient-centered care preferences and expectations in older adults.
• To explore a three-archetype heuristic (Partner, Client, Customer) for patient care preferences.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional survey of 17 Medicare-eligible patients at five community pharmacies.
• Developed 15 Likert-type items across five constructs for three archetypes.
• Analyzed internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) and used k-means clustering.

Main Results:

• The "Partner" archetype scale showed good internal consistency (α=0.66).
• K-means clustering identified two groups: "Independent Partner" and "Collaborative Partner."
• Significant differences were found between clusters regarding autonomy and collaboration value.

Conclusions:

• Older adults may prefer a
• Partner
• archetype, indicating a desire for tailored, co-created care experiences.
• Long-standing relationships with pharmacists appear to be highly valued by older adult patients.