Environmental and personal barriers encountered in community pharmacy settings based on public opinions

Figures & data

Table 1. Sociodemographic characteristics of the enrolled participants.

		Frequency (%) or Median (95Cl)
Age		30 (28–33)
Gender	Male	252 (35%)
	Female	469 (65%)
Marital status	Married	354 (49.1%)
	Non married	367 (50.9%)
Monthly Income	Less than 500 JOD	403 (55.9%)
	500–1000JOD	229 (31.8%)
	More than 1000 JOD	89 (12.3%)
Level of education	High school or less	82 (11.4%)
	Diploma	71 (9.8%)
	Bachelors	486 (67.4%)
	Master, PhD	82 (11.4%)
What is the type of pharmacy you seek to get your medication or seek medical advice, most of the time?	Chain Pharmacy	247 (34.3%)
	Independent pharmacy	474 (65.7%)
Pharmacy location	North	190 (26.6%)
	Middle	253 (35.4%)
	South	272 (38%)
In general what age range does the pharmacist that you interact with belong to?	Recent graduates (20s)	116 (16.1%)
	Mid-career professionals (30s and 40s)	451 (62.6%)
	Experienced (50s or older)	154 (21.4%)

Table 2. Environmental barriers.

Barrier	No frequency (%)	Yes frequency (%)
The prescription counter separating patients from the pharmacy personnel is inappropriate for effective communication?	409 (56.7)	312 (43.3)
Is it crowded, noisy there at prescription area?	488 (67.7)	233 (32.3)
There was a lack of privacy area (counseling area)	440 (61)	281 (39)
Inappropriate light, visibility, or poor visual quality	678 (94)	43 (6)
Inappropriate pharmacy temperature	697 (96.7)	24 (3.3)
Uncomfortable Pharmacy design and decoration	622 (86.3)	99 (13.7)
The waiting area was uncomfortable	480 (66.6)	241 (33.4)
It was not easy for me to access the pharmacist to have a meaningful dialogue	598 (82.9)	123 (17.1)
The pharmacist was not always visible during your last visit	699 (96.9)	22 (3.1)
Was it hard to get the pharmacist's attention in your last visit?	661 (91.7)	60 (8.3)
The pharmacy was not disability friendly	293 (40.6)	428 (59.4)

Table 3. Personal barriers.

Barrier	Strongly disagree Frequency (%)	Disagree Frequency (%)	Neutral Frequency (%)	Agree Frequency (%)	Strongly agree Frequency (%)	Median (95% Cl)
The pharmacist seems to have low self-confidence	6 (0.8%)	9 (1.2%)	126 (17.5%)	382 (53%)	198 (27.5%)	4 (4–5)
In my opinion, the pharmacist I dealt with in my last visit seems shy	105 (14.6%)	347 (48.1%)	203 (28.2%)	55 (7.6%)	11 (1.5%)	2 (2–3)
I felt discomfort in discussing sensitive situations/issues with the pharmacist	92 (12.8%)	279 (38.7%)	201 (27.9%)	113 (15.7%)	36 (5%)	2 (2–3)
In my opinion, the pharmacist was not knowledgeable enough to answer my questions	124 (17.2%)	385 (53.4%)	137 (19%)	57 (7.9%)	18 (2.5%)	2 (2–3)
In my opinion, the pharmacist showed a lack of interest in answering my questions in my last visit	131 (18.2%)	413 (57.3%)	112 (15.5%)	45 (6.2%)	20 (2.8%)	2 (2–3)

Table 4. Reasons to consult or visit community pharmacy.

Reason	Frequency (%)
Refill regular medications	179 (24.83%)
Dispensing medications	394 (54.65%)
Purchase over the counter (OTC) medications	371 (51.46%)
Seek advice and consultations from pharmacists	287 (39.81%)
Health screenings such as blood pressure checks, blood glucose monitoring, pulse oximeter	83 (11.51%)

Table 5. Reasons to prefer one pharmacy over the other.

Reason	Frequency (%)
Nearby location	547 (75.87%)
Personality and knowledge of pharmacist	459 (63.66%)
Short waiting times	104 (14.42%)
Additional services (blood pressure, glucose, pulse measures)	98 (13.59%)
Insurance coverage	170 (23.58%)

Table 6. A binary regression between sociodemographic characteristics and personal barriers.

Characteristics		p-value	OR	95% C.I. for OR
				Lower	Upper
Age		0.699	0.996	0.978	1.015
Gender	Male	0.042	1.419	1.013	1.987
	Female	(REF)	(REF)	(REF)	(REF)
Marital status	Married	0.043	1.609	1.015	2.550
	Non married	(REF)	(REF)	(REF)	(REF)
Monthly Income	500 JOD-1000JOD	0.814	1.047	0.716	1.531
	More than 1000 JOD	0.017	0.505	0.288	0.886
	Less than 500 JOD	(REF)	(REF)	(REF)	(REF)
Level of education	High school or less	0.419	0.763	0.396	1.470
	Diploma	0.044	0.489	0.244	0.980
	Bachelors	0.737	0.917	0.554	1.518
	Master, PhD	(REF)	(REF)	(REF)	(REF)
Type of pharmacy to get medical advice	Chain Pharmacy	0.076	1.364	0.969	1.920
	Independent pharmacy	(REF)	(REF)	(REF)	(REF)
Age of pharmacists that participants generally interact with	Recent graduates (20s)	0.510	1.184	0.717	1.955
	Mid-career professionals (30s and 40s)	0.249	1.255	0.853	1.848
	experienced (50s or older)	(REF)	(REF)	(REF)	(REF)
Pharmacy location	North	0.227	0.762	0.491	1.183
	Middle	0.525	0.878	0.589	1.311
	South	(REF)	(REF)	(REF)	(REF)