Public health in community pharmacy: a systematic review of pharmacist and consumer views

BACKGROUND The increasing involvement of pharmacists in public health will require changes in the behaviour of both pharmacists and the general public. A great deal of research has shown that attitudes and beliefs are important determinants of behaviour. This review aims to examine the beliefs and attitudes of pharmacists and consumers towards pharmaceutical public health in order to inform how best to support and improve this service. METHODS Five electronic databases were searched for articles published in English between 2001 and 2010. Titles and abstracts were screened by one researcher according to the inclusion criteria. Papers were included if they assessed pharmacy staff or consumer attitudes towards pharmaceutical public health. Full papers identified for inclusion were assessed by a second researcher and data were extracted by one researcher. RESULTS From the 5628 papers identified, 63 studies in 67 papers were included. Pharmacy staff: Most pharmacists viewed public health services as important and part of their role but secondary to medicine related roles. Pharmacists' confidence in providing public health services was on the whole average to low. Time was consistently identified as a barrier to providing public health services. Lack of an adequate counselling space, lack of demand and expectation of a negative reaction from customers were also reported by some pharmacists as barriers. A need for further training was identified in relation to a number of public health services. Consumers: Most pharmacy users had never been offered public health services by their pharmacist and did not expect to be offered. Consumers viewed pharmacists as appropriate providers of public health advice but had mixed views on the pharmacists' ability to do this. Satisfaction was found to be high in those that had experienced pharmaceutical public health. CONCLUSIONS There has been little change in customer and pharmacist attitudes since reviews conducted nearly 10 years previously. In order to improve the public health services provided in community pharmacy, training must aim to increase pharmacists' confidence in providing these services. Confident, well trained pharmacists should be able to offer public health service more proactively which is likely to have a positive impact on customer attitudes and health

Computer-based technology and student engagement: a critical review of the literature

Computer-based technology has infiltrated many aspects of life and industry, yet there is little understanding of how it can be used to promote student engagement, a concept receiving strong attention in higher education due to its association with a number of positive academic outcomes. The purpose of this article is to present a critical review of the literature from the past 5 years related to how web-conferencing software, blogs, wikis, social networking sites (Facebook and Twitter), and digital games influence student engagement. We prefaced the findings with a substantive overview of student engagement definitions and indicators, which revealed three types of engagement (behavioral, emotional, and cognitive) that informed how we classified articles. Our findings suggest that digital games provide the most far-reaching influence across different types of student engagement, followed by web-conferencing and Facebook. Findings regarding wikis, blogs, and Twitter are less conclusive and significantly limited in number of studies conducted within the past 5 years. Overall, the findings provide preliminary support that computer-based technology influences student engagement, however, additional research is needed to confirm and build on these findings. We conclude the article by providing a list of recommendations for practice, with the intent of increasing understanding of how computer-based technology may be purposefully implemented to achieve the greatest gains in student engagement. © 2017, The Author(s)

"Bomba hormonal": os riscos da contracepção de emergência na perspectiva dos balconistas de farmácias no Rio de Janeiro, Brasil

Resumo: A pesquisa objetivou conhecer a perspectiva dos balconistas de farmácias sobre a contracepção de emergência na Região Metropolitana do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. O material empírico advém de pesquisa socioantropológica com vinte entrevistas semiestruturadas com balconistas dos sexos feminino (8) e masculino (12). Os entrevistados apresentam concepções negativas sobre a contracepção de emergência, enfatizando os riscos que ela pode provocar à saúde. O medicamento é considerado uma "bomba hormonal" que pode causar danos aos órgãos reprodutivos femininos e outros sistemas do corpo. Eles destacam os riscos do uso "descontrolado" ou "indiscriminado", especialmente por adolescentes e mulheres jovens. Por ser considerado "perigoso" aos corpos femininos, eles atribuem a responsabilidade de orientação e aconselhamento sobre o uso do método aos médicos ginecologistas e não aos farmacêuticos. Discute-se a necessidade de ampliação do debate público sobre contracepção de emergência no Brasil, incluindo-se os farmacêuticos e balconistas de farmácia, além dos profissionais de saúde e educadores

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Emergency contraception - an evidence-based practice guide

Emergency contraception (EC) has the potential to reduce unintended pregnancy and abortion rates. This review provides an overview of the three main methods of EC available in Australia, including the copper intrauterine device and oral ECs, levonorgestrel and ulipristal acetate, and brings together evidence from several guidelines to assist pharmacists’ practices. The relative efficacy and safety of each method are discussed, together with practical recommendations regarding special considerations, including ongoing contraception, women with an elevated body mass index, drug interactions and breastfeeding. An evidence-based treatment algorithm is provided to assist in decision-making regarding EC use, with ulipristal acetate now likely to be the first-line oral EC given its superior efficacy relative to levonorgestrel, irrespective of time taken following unprotected sexual intercourse, but there are special considerations regarding its use. Pharmacists must be aware of key differences in available methods of EC and be prepared to counsel women on such to facilitate shared decision-making.Luke E. Grzeskowiak, Claire T. Roberts, Helen E. Calabrett

Student perspectives on a state-wide relationships and sexual health programme in South Australian schools, 2006–2017

Published online 05 September 2021Relationships and sexual health education is an accepted part of the school curriculum to support adolescent development. In recent years, the nature of this education has expanded to include topics encompassing a social model of health (e.g. with a focus on gender roles). There has, however, been limited exploration of student views about the inclusion of these topics. This paper presents student feedback on South Australia’s Relationships and Sexual Health Programme, a state-wide curriculum produced by the state’s major sexual and reproductive health organisation. The findings are drawn from an annual survey conducted from 2006 to 2017, involving 29,533 secondary school students aged 12–16 years. Regression analyses were used to assess the relationship between the year the survey was conducted and student ratings of the programme (‘good/excellent’ vs ‘poor/satisfactory’) and, separately, the individual topics students’ considered most important. There was a positive association between survey year and rating the programme as ‘good/excellent’ with regard to providing a ‘safe and supportive classroom environment’, and a small negative association between survey year and ‘overall rating’ as ‘good/excellent’. Over time, there was an increase in the number of students selecting the topic ‘consent’ as the most important. These findings demonstrate student support for the inclusion of a range of social health topics in relationships and sexual health education.Sophie GE Kedzior, Helen Calabrettob, Heidi Drummond, Tassia K Oswald, Zohra S Lassi, Vivienne M. Moore and Alice Rumbol