Rural Aged Care Providers' Engagement in Medication Communication During Transitions of Care: A Qualitative Study

To explore how healthcare providers in rural aged care homes communicate about medications during transitions of care involving residents.

Two residential aged care homes in rural Australia.

Ten female healthcare providers including nurses, personal care assistants and pharmacists.

Qualitative exploratory study using semi-structured interviews, analysed thematically, with engagement mapped via the Patient and Family Engagement Framework. Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research guidelines were followed.

Two themes emerged from the interview data: (1) Providers' perceptions of medication communication roles and responsibilities, and (2) Providers' perceptions of challenges to engaging in medication communication. Nurses played a central but often reactive role, with resident and family engagement varying by capacity, proximity and interest. Personal care assistants and visiting pharmacists and personal care assistants contributed valuable safety and observational insights. Communication with other providers was fragmented and influenced by systemic and contextual inefficiencies.

Healthcare providers in rural aged care homes, particularly nurses, face challenges in medication communication during care transitions. Structured, collaborative strategies are needed to ensure consistent information sharing and proactive resident and family engagement, with opportunities to strengthen contributions from pharmacists and personal care assistants in supporting person-centred care.