Community pharmacists provided telephone treatment support for patients who received long-term prescribed medication

Figures & data

Table 1 Category of recorded items

Category	Description of examples
Blood pressure	Frequency of blood pressure measurement, time range, and reason; values of blood pressure and heart rate; and blood pressure condition
Changes in physical condition	Presence of changes in physical condition; symptoms; time; frequency; and actions taken
Side effects	Presence of suspicion (prescription medications, OTC drugs, and functional foods); symptoms; time, frequency; and actions taken
Therapies and prescriptions	Changes in prescriptions; changes in dosage and administration; therapy method; instructions from physician; and consultation
Medication compliance	Presence, frequency, and reason of missed dosage, self-adjustment, accidental ingestion, or medication withdrawal; understanding of medication administration; and action to take for missed dosage
Leftover medication	Presence of excess and deficiency; cause and reason; amount of leftover medication; presence of adjustment of dates of prescription; expiration date; and disposal of medication
Storage	Presence of storage location for medication, and changes in quality of medication
Examinations elsewhere	Presence; number of examinations; specialty department names; and purpose and reason
Concomitant medication	Presence; names of prescription medications; start and end; time; and reason and purpose
Tests, surgeries	Schedule; time; reason; necessity for medication withdrawal; and results. Includes dental extraction
Treatment history	History; medication history; and treatment history
OTC drugs, functional foods	Presence; time; symptoms; frequency; reason; process; and consultation
Interactions	Intake of prescription medications, OTC drugs, functional foods, and regular foods (grapefruit juice) that might cause interactions; and process
Lifestyle, habits	Diet and sodium intake; exercise; habits; favorite foods; work; trips; and consultation
Other	Urgent care; plan to change hospitals; body weight; opinions about consultation; desire; and medication handbook

Abbreviation: OTC, over-the-counter medication.

Table 2 Characteristics of participants at start of study

Characteristics		Control group		Intervention group		P
		n	%	n	%
Totals		53	100.0%	59	100.0%
Sex	Female	21	39.6%	23	39.0%	0.945a
	Male	32	60.4%	36	61.0%
Age	60–64	16	30.2%	19	32.2%	0.560a
	65–69	15	28.3%	21	35.6%
	70–74	22	41.5%	19	32.2%
Issuing institution	Hospital	50	94.3%	50	84.7%	0.101a
	Clinic	3	5.7%	9	15.3%
Prescription length (days)	14–35	13	24.5%	17	28.8%
	36–70	26	49.1%	29	49.2%
	71 or more	14	26.4%	13	22.0%
Number of prescriptions (ave ± SD)		3.30±1.20		3.32±1.37		0.935b
Amlodipine	Brand drug	39	73.6%	42	71.2%	0.472a
	Generic	14	26.4%	17	28.8%

Notes:

a Chi-square test;

b Student’s t-test.

Abbreviations: ave, average; SD, standard deviation.

Table 3 Number of data items collected from counseling

	Control group (n=53)			Intervention group (n=59)
	At the pharmacy			At the pharmacy			By telephone
	Number of samples	Ratio	Number of samples per person	Number of samples	Ratio	Number of samples per person	Number of samples	Ratio	Number of samples per person
Totals	837	100.0%	15.8	935	100.0%	15.8	680	100.0%	11.5
Blood pressure	126	15.1%	2.4	147	15.7%	2.5	86	12.6%	1.5
Changes in physical condition	55	6.6%	1.0	66	7.1%	1.1	82	12.1%	1.4
Side effects	19	2.3%	0.4	29	3.1%	0.5	41	6.0%	0.7
Medication compliance	77	9.2%	1.5	85	9.1%	1.4	72	10.6%	1.2
Leftover medication	81	9.7%	1.5	92	9.8%	1.6	40	5.9%	0.7
Storage	23	2.7%	0.4	16	1.7%	0.3	8	1.2%	0.1
Examinations elsewhere	67	8.0%	1.3	77	8.2%	1.3	45	6.6%	0.8
Concomitant medication	58	6.9%	1.1	66	7.1%	1.1	40	5.9%	0.7
OTC drugs, functional foods	44	5.3%	0.8	55	5.9%	0.9	42	6.2%	0.7
Interactions	18	2.2%	0.3	22	2.4%	0.4	9	1.3%	0.2
Lifestyle, habits	149	17.8%	2.8	155	16.6%	2.6	113	16.6%	1.9
Other	120	14.3%	2.3	125	13.4%	2.1	102	15.0%	1.7
Treatment	49	5.9%	0.9	50	5.3%	0.8	29	4.3%	0.5
Tests, surgeries	30	3.6%	0.6	36	3.9%	0.6	32	4.7%	0.5
Treatment history	19	2.3%	0.4	11	1.2%	0.2	14	2.1%	0.2
Other	22	2.6%	0.4	28	3.0%	0.5	27	4.0%	0.5

Abbreviation: OTC, over-the-counter medication.

Table 4 Number of times guidance provided

	Control group (n=53)		Intervention group (n=59)
	Guidance count	Ratio	Guidance count	Ratio
Totals	157	100.0%	450	100.0%
The incidents with priority needs	9	5.7%	46	10.2%
Confirmed problem resolution after guidance	3	1.9%	25	5.6%

Table 5 Guidance for important items and number of resolved cases

	Control group		Intervention group
	Guidance at pharmacy	Number resolved	Guidance at pharmacy	Guidance by telephone	Number resolved
Totals	9	3	9	37	20
Blood pressure	0	0	0	1	0
Changes in physical condition	2	1	1	9	5
Side effects	3	1	2	10	8
Medication compliance	3	1	1	7	2
Storage	0	0	1	0	0
Examinations elsewhere	0	0	1	1	1
Concomitant medication	0	0	1	1	1
OTC drugs, functional foods	0	0	0	1	0
Lifestyle, habits	0	0	1	2	0
Treatment, prescription	1	0	1	5	3

Abbreviation: OTC, over-the-counter medication.

Table 6 Changes in awareness and behavior at end of study

	Control group (n=53)	Intervention group (n=59)	P
I forget to take my medication less often	1	6	0.071
I have a higher desire for treatment	1	8	0.023
I do not wait as long to seek consultation about things I am worried or anxious about	8	6	0.431
I started paying attention to what I eat	6	7	0.929
I started exercising	1	6	0.071
I started using a medicine journal	3	6	0.381
I am now aware of the effects of taking other medicines with my medication	2	6	0.189
I now feel I can ask the pharmacist about anything	1	2	0.623
Other, no change	19	19	0.684

Note: Chi-square test.