https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0108-9169
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ABSTRACT
The ward round (WR) is an important opportunity for interprofessional interaction and communication enabling optimal patient care. Pharmacists’ participation in the interprofessional WR can reduce adverse drug events and improve medication appropriateness and communication. WR participation by clinical pharmacists in Australia is currently limited. This study aims to explore what is impacting clinical pharmacists’ participation in WRs in Australian hospitals. A self-administered, anonymous national survey of Australian clinical pharmacists was conducted. This study describes the outcomes from qualitative questions which were analyzed thematically in NVivo-2020 according to Braun and Clarke’s techniques. Five themes were constructed: “Clinical pharmacy service structure”, “Ward round structure”, “Pharmacist’s capabilities”, “Culture” and “Value”. A culture supportive of pharmacist’s contribution with a consistent WR structure and flexible delivery of clinical pharmacy services enabled pharmacists’ participation in WR. Being physically “absent” from the WR due to workload, workflow, and self-perception of the need for extensive clinical knowledge can limit opportunities for pharmacists to proactively contribute to medicines decision-making with physicians to improve patient care outcomes. Bidirectional communication between the interprofessional team and the pharmacist, where there is a co-construction of each individual’s role in the WR facilitates consistent and inter-dependent collaborations for effective medication management.
Acknowledgments
Thank you to the professional body, SHPA for supporting this research by promoting the survey to their members. Most importantly, thank you to all the pharmacists that took the time to contribute to this research.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Data availability statement
The data that support the findings of this study are available on request from the corresponding author, [DB] upon reasonable request.
Supplementary material
Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/13561820.2023.2289506.
Additional information
Funding
Notes on contributors
Dona Babu
Dona Babu is a Doctor of Philosophy student at the University of South Australia. She is also a pharmacist at SA Pharmacy, the statewide public hospital pharmacy service in South Australia.
Sally Marotti
Sally Marotti is a pharmacist and adjunct clinical lecturer at The University of South Australia (UniSA). She is the lead pharmacist for education and research at SA Pharmacy, the statewide public hospital pharmacy service in South Australia.
Debra Rowett
Debra Rowett is a pharmacist and Professor of Pharmacy at the University of South Australia (UniSA), Director of the Drug and Therapeutics Information Service (DATIS) Southern Adelaide Local Health Network. Member of the Drug Utilization SubCommittee of the Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee.
Renly Lim
Renly Lim is a pharmacist and Senior Research Fellow at the University of South Australia. She leads projects to improve medicine safety in Australia and internationally, and is passionate about public engagement to improve medicine use and health outcomes.
Alice Wisdom
Alice Wisdom is a pharmacist working within SA Pharmacy. She is the acting deputy director of pharmacy for medicines governance, mental health and research at Northern Adelaide Local Health Network (NALHN).
Lisa Kalisch Ellett
Lisa Kalisch Ellett is an Associate Professor in Pharmacy and Pharmacoepidemiology and Enterprise Fellow at the University of South Australia.