Includes bibliographical references.

Preparing the health workforce to enhance medication safety -- A systematic review of pharmacist-led medicines review services in New Zealand – is there equity for Māori older adults? -- Measurement of health literacy in patients with cardiovascular diseases: A systematic review -- Facilitating community partnerships to reduce opioid overdose: An engaged department initiative -- Factors associated with how often community pharmacists offer and dispense naloxone -- Clusters of non-adherence to medication in neurological patients -- Understanding the knowledge, attitudes and beliefs of community-dwelling older adults and their carers about the modification of oral medicines: A qualitative interview study to inform healthcare professional practice -- Faculty perceptions of a tobacco cessation train-the-trainer workshop and experiences with implementation: A qualitative follow-up study -- Belgian community pharmacists’ pharmacovigilance perspective and practice -- Impact of a multi-component immunization intervention on pneumococcal and herpes zoster vaccinations: A randomized controlled trial of community pharmacies in 2 states -- Mapping pharmacy journals: A lexicographic analysis -- The FIP Nanjing Statements: Shaping global pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences education -- The role of reflective practice in healthcare professions: Next steps for pharmacy education and practice -- Error types with use of medication-related technology: A mixed methods research study -- Consumer tradeoff of advertising claim versus efficacy information in direct-to-consumer prescription drug ads -- Communicating benefits and risks of generic drugs to consumers: Patient and caregiver opinions of two FDA-developed educational materials -- Letter to the Editor: “Development and validation of key performance indicators for medication management services provided for outpatients” [Res Social Adm Pharm 15 (9) (2019) 1080-7] -- 71st anniversary of pharmacy profession in Pakistan: Why pharmacists’ are still flying under the radar? -- Lack of female pharmacist leadership and struggling pharmacy profession: A call to action -- Complexities in predicting deprescribing success using patients’ beliefs and attitudes -- 9th Nordic Social Pharmacy Conference 2019. Conference abstracts.

[Article Title: Preparing the health workforce to enhance medication safety/ Maria Cordina, p. 1381-1382]

Abstract: It has been well established that inappropriate medicines use, unsafe medication practices, as well as medication errors are having a significantly negative impact on patient and economic outcomes globally.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2019.02.005

[Article Title: A systematic review of pharmacist-led medicines review services in New Zealand – is there equity for Māori older adults?/ Joanna Hikaka, Carmel Hughes, Rhys Jones, Martin J. Connolly and Nataly Martini, p. 1383-1394]

Abstract:

Background
Pharmacist involvement in medicines reviews for older adults can improve prescribing and reduce adverse drug reactions. Māori experience poorer health outcomes than non-Māori resulting, in part, from inequitable access to and quality of medicine-related care. Despite international data showing benefit, it is unclear whether pharmacist-led medicines review services can improve outcomes for Māori older adults.

Objective
This systematic review aims to describe pharmacist-led medicines review services for community-dwelling adults in New Zealand, assess effectiveness of these interventions and identify their effect on health equity for Māori and older adults.

Methods
The review was conducted in accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses – Equity (PRISMA-E 2012). Observational studies were included. The intervention in included studies had to involve a pharmacist, occur in the outpatient setting in New Zealand, and involve review of all medicines for an individual patient. At least one patient-related outcome had to be reported.

Results
The search identified seven observational studies with 542 total participants. Study interventions included adherence-based reviews in community pharmacies and multi-step comprehensive clinical reviews in outpatient haemodialysis units. Medicines reviews identified up to a median of 3 drug-related problems per review. The effect of interventions on medicines adherence and knowledge was not clear. Māori may have been less likely than non-Māori to benefit from improved medicines knowledge as a result of interventions. None of the studies incorporated aspects in study design or delivery to address inequities for Māori.

Conclusion
Further investigation is needed to understand whether the development of culturally safe pharmacist-led medicines review services, responsive to community identified needs, can help to achieve equity in health outcomes for Māori older adults.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2019.01.009

[Article Title: Measurement of health literacy in patients with cardiovascular diseases: A systematic review/ Marwa Elbashir, Ahmed Awaisu, Maguy Saffouh El Hajj and Daniel Christopher Rainkie, p. 1395-1405]

Abstract:

Background
While many instruments have been developed, validated, and used to assess health literacy skills, their use and appropriateness among patients with cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are not widely studied.

Objective
To identify, appraise, and synthesize available health literacy assessment instruments used in patients with CVDs.

Methods
Electronic databases were searched for studies that used validated measures to assess health literacy in patients with CVDs. Included studies were assessed for risk of bias and the identified instruments were evaluated based on their psychometric properties. Data were synthesized using a narrative approach.

Results
Forty-three studies were included in the review, of which 20 were cross-sectional studies and 12 were randomized controlled trials. Eleven health literacy assessment instruments were identified, of which only one was disease-specific. The Abbreviated version of the Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults (S-TOFHLA) (n = 19) and the Rapid Estimate of Adult Literacy in Medicine (REALM) (n = 13) were found to be the most commonly used instruments to assess health literacy in CVDs.

Conclusions
The S-TOFHLA and the REALM are the most widely used instruments to evaluate health literacy in CVD population. More CVD-specific health literacy screening instruments are warranted. Assessment of health literacy should be a standard of care in patients with CVDs and effective interventions should be developed to improve the impact of limited health literacy on health outcomes in this population.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2019.01.008

[Article Title: Facilitating community partnerships to reduce opioid overdose: An engaged department initiative/ Laura C. Palombi, Amy LaRue and Kerry K. Fierke, p. 1406-1414]

Abstract:

Background
The opioid crisis is a major public health priority for most United States communities and requires multi-disciplinary and multi-pronged approaches. Despite this, there is considerable unfulfilled potential for engagement of academic pharmacy with community partners to form mutually-beneficial relationships.

Objectives
This study sought to determine how an opioid-focused Engaged Department Initiative might increase partnerships with rural community members and positively impact faculty teaching, service, practice and research while addressing a critical public health crisis in northern Minnesota.

Methods
A multidisciplinary department at a College of Pharmacy participated in an 18-month Engaged Department Initiative focused on building community partnerships to address the opioid crisis in rural communities of northern Minnesota. This initiative included internal, departmental-specific components, as well as external components focused on meeting opioid-related needs in the community.

Results
This initiative resulted in statistically significant increases in faculty understanding of and appreciation for community engagement, as well as the creation of impactful community-led programming focused on prevention and intervention of opioid use disorder. The community partnerships that were formed and strengthened throughout the Engaged Department Initiative have led to continuing opioid-related engagement activities with an ever-increasing number of surrounding communities.

Conclusion
An Engaged Department process allowed one department to bring a higher level of attention to community engagement to the entire College of Pharmacy and to incorporate goals and initiatives related to community engagement into a new collegiate strategic plan.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2018.07.002

[Article Title: Factors associated with how often community pharmacists offer and dispense naloxone/ Delesha M. Carpenter, Aditi K. Dhamanaskar, Kelsea L. Gallegos, Greene Shepherd, Sherita L. Mosley and Courtney A. Roberts, p. 1415-1418]

Abstract:

Background
A recent Surgeon General's report encourages people to ask pharmacists about naloxone, but whether pharmacists are well-prepared to respond to these requests is unclear.

Objectives
Determine factors that are associated with how often pharmacists offer and dispense naloxone.

Methods
A convenience sample of 457 community pharmacists in North Carolina completed a 5-min online survey. Linear regressions were conducted to identify factors that are associated with how often pharmacists offer and dispense naloxone. Pharmacists' self-reported barriers to teaching naloxone administration were identified.

Results
Most pharmacists (81.2%) worked in pharmacies that stocked naloxone, but many never offered (36.6%) or dispensed (19.4%) naloxone. Pharmacists offered (β = 0.15, p < 0.01) and dispensed (β = 0.15, p < 0.01) naloxone more often when their pharmacy stocked more naloxone formulations. Pharmacists who were more comfortable discussing naloxone offered it more often (β = 0.26, p = 0.001). Pharmacists who worked in regional/local/grocery chain pharmacies dispensed and offered naloxone less often than other pharmacy types. Barriers to teaching naloxone administration included: time constraints, inadequate training, and perceived lack of patient comprehension.

Conclusions
Many community pharmacists do not offer or dispense naloxone. Pharmacists who are uncomfortable discussing naloxone or work at smaller chain pharmacies may benefit from targeted naloxone training.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2018.07.008

[Article Title: Clusters of non-adherence to medication in neurological patients/ Tino Prell, Julian Grosskreutz, Sarah Mendorf, Gabriele Helga Franke, Otto W. Witte and Albrecht Kunze, p. 1419-1424]

Abstract:
Background
Non-adherence to medication is a common and serious problem in health care. To develop more effective interventions to improve adherence, there is a need for a better understanding of the individual types of non-adherence.

Objective
To determine clusters of non-adherence in neurological patients using a complex adherence questionnaire.

Methods
In this observational, monocentric study 500 neurological patients (consecutive sampling) were recruited in the Department of Neurology at the Jena University Hospital, Germany (outpatient clinic, wards) over a period of 5 months. Patients with severe dementia or delirium who were unable to complete the questionnaire were excluded. Due to missing adherence data, in total, 429 patients with common neurological disorders were analyzed. Different types and clusters of non-adherence using the German Stendal Adherence to Medication Score (SAMS) were determined.

Results
For the 429 patients, the mean age was 63 years (SD = 16), 189 were female. According to the SAMS total score 74 (17.2%) were fully adherent, 252 (58.7%) showed moderate non-adherence and 103 (24%) showed clinically significant non-adherence. Principal component analysis with Varimax rotation revealed three independent factors explaining 60.5% of the SAMS variance. The bulk of non-adherence was attributed to modifications of medication (41.7%) and forgetting to take the medication (33.2%) followed by lack of knowledge 25.1% about reasons, dosages and time of administration for the medication.

Conclusions
Intentional non-adherence was the primary self-reported behavior identified among non-adherent neurological participants. Many patients modified their prescribed medication due to various reasons, such as side effects or lacking effect. Different clusters require different interventions. While for the cluster ´forgetfulness' the reduction of poly-medication and a behavioral approach with reminders seems reasonable, patients in cluster ´missing knowledge' and cluster ´modifications' may need an educational approach.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2019.01.001

[Article Title: Understanding the knowledge, attitudes and beliefs of community-dwelling older adults and their carers about the modification of oral medicines: A qualitative interview study to inform healthcare professional practice/ Aoife Mc Gillicuddy, Maria Kelly, Abina M. Crean and Laura J. Sahm, 1425-1435]

Abstract:

Background
Oral medicines are commonly modified (e.g. tablets split/crushed) to meet the dosing and swallowing requirements of older adults. However, there is limited research investigating the opinions of community-dwelling patients and carers about medicine modification.

Objectives
The aim of this study was to investigate the views of community-dwelling older adults and their carers about oral medicine modification.

Methods
Semi-structured, face-to-face interviews were conducted with community-dwelling older adults and carers of older adults who experienced difficulty swallowing medicines, or who required medicines to be modified. Participants were recruited from purposively selected community pharmacies using a combination of purposive, convenience and snowball sampling. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed thematically. The Francis method governed when data saturation had been reached.

Results
Twenty-six interviews (13 patients, 13 carers) were conducted (76.9% female, median length 11 min (IQR 8–16 min)). Four themes emerged from the data: variation in medical needs and preferences; balancing acceptance and resignation; healthcare professional engagement and; opportunities for optimising formulation suitability. The heterogeneity of medical conditions experienced by community-dwelling older adults resulted in a variety of modifications being required. Patients and carers are accepting of their medications and formulations. However, when challenges arise, they tend to feel resigned to coping within the constraints of the current medication regimen, resulting in a lack of focused communication with healthcare professionals. Thus, healthcare professionals were unaware of their difficulties and unable to offer advice or solutions.

Conclusion
Healthcare professionals must engage proactively with this group. Whilst a holistic approach to medication management is ideal, the disadvantage is that no single healthcare professional may identify this as their responsibility. Whilst the input and expertise of all healthcare professionals will be required, as medication experts, the pharmacy profession should take ownership and become the champion of, and for, the patient.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2019.01.004

[Article Title: Faculty perceptions of a tobacco cessation train-the-trainer workshop and experiences with implementation: A qualitative follow-up study/ Nervana Elkhadragy, Robin L. Corelli, Alissa L. Russ, Margie E. Snyder, Mercedes Clabaugh and Karen Suchanek Hudmon, p. 1436-1445]

Abstract:

Background
Between 2003 and 2005, pharmacy faculty members (n = 191) participated in a national train-the-trainer workshop designed to equip faculty with the necessary knowledge and skills to implement a shared curriculum, Rx for Change: Clinician-Assisted Tobacco Cessation, at pharmacy schools across the United States.

Objective
To conduct a long-term, qualitative follow-up study of faculty participants to describe (a) perceptions of the train-the-trainer workshop, and (b) subsequent experiences with curricular implementation. Results of this investigation will inform a national survey of all train-the-trainer participants.

Methods
Participants were selected via random sampling from the group of 191 faculty members who participated in the workshop. Semi-structured telephone interviews with participants were audio-recorded and transcribed, and qualitative thematic analysis was conducted.

Results
Eighteen (62%) of 29 invited individuals participated in the interviews. All participants reported implementing components of Rx for Change at their institution. The analysis yielded eight major themes pertaining to faculty perceptions and experiences with implementation: (1) accessibility to tools for teaching, (2) increased confidence and skills, (3) flexibility delivering the curriculum, (4) factors facilitating implementation and challenges encountered by faculty, (5) enhancement in treating tobacco users in clinical practice, (6) students' confidence and cognizance of the pharmacists' role as a public health advocate, (7) networking and career development opportunities, and (8) useful background for research.

Conclusion
Participation in the train-the-trainer workshop increased self-reported confidence for teaching tobacco cessation, and faculty valued access to useful, updated tools for teaching. Furthermore, their newly acquired counseling skills were deemed helpful for treating patients' tobacco use and dependence in clinical practice. Participants also perceived improved pharmacy students' confidence and beneficial networking opportunities. Results can help future trainers understand faculty experiences with implementing a shared, national curriculum and inform faculty participants of some of the potential long-term outcomes as a result of participation.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2019.01.005

[Article Title: Belgian community pharmacists’ pharmacovigilance perspective and practice/ Dieter De Meestere and Jan Saevels, p. 1446-1452]

Abstract:

Background
Pharmacovigilance legislation was introduced back in 2012 with new concepts such as the inverted black triangles and risk minimisation activities. Healthcare professionals need to familiarize themselves with these new notions in order to comply with their obligations such as risk mitigation and reporting of adverse drug reactions.

Objective
To measure the magnitude and relevance of these new concepts and the impact on everyday dispensing in Belgian community pharmacies.

Methods
An inventory database was constructed containing all relevant pharmacovigilance information at product level, and this data was made available within the pharmacy dispensing software. Furthermore, for a typical community pharmacy, the number of concerned products and the number of dispensed products with supplementary pharmacovigilance responsibilities was determined.

Results
The number of available and dispensed medicines with black triangle or additional risk minimisation activities has increased significantly since July 2014. During July 2017, each pharmacy dispensed around 120 packs with risk minimisation obligations and around 70 with a black triangle, clearly illustrating the relevance of having all information at hand.

Conclusions
With relevant safety information available at the point of dispensing, pharmacists can now focus on complying with their pharmacovigilance responsibilities.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2019.01.007

[Article Title: Impact of a multi-component immunization intervention on pneumococcal and herpes zoster vaccinations: A randomized controlled trial of community pharmacies in 2 states/ Lindsey A. Hohmann, Tessa J. Hastings, David R. Ha, Kimberly B. Garza, Sally A. Huston, Li Chen and Salisa C. Westrick, p. 1453-1463]

Abstract: Background
The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of the We Immunize Program on structures, processes, and outcomes of pneumococcal and herpes zoster pharmacy-based immunization services.

Methods
Pharmacy-technician pairs from 62 Alabama and California community pharmacies participated in a 6-month randomized controlled trial (intervention = 30/control = 32). All received immunization update training; intervention participants also received practical strategies training and monthly telephonic expert feedback. Completion of immunization service structure and process activities were analyzed using Fisher's Exact and one-way Mann-Whitney U tests. The primary outcome, change in number of pneumococcal, herpes zoster, and total vaccine doses administered, was assessed using one-way Wilcoxon signed rank and Mann-Whitney U tests. Associations between program and vaccine doses across time were explored using generalized estimating equations (GEE).

Results
Intervention pharmacies completed more structure (median 12.00 versus 9.00, p = 0.200) and process activities (median 8.00 versus 7.00, p = 0.048) compared to control. Statistically significant increases in the median number of pneumococcal vaccine doses (7.50–12.00 doses, p = 0.007), and total vaccine doses (12.50–28.00 doses, p = 0.014) were seen from baseline to post-intervention within the intervention group. However, these changes were not statistically significant when compared to the control group (pneumococcal p = 0.136, total p = 0.202). Changes in median herpes zoster vaccine doses did not reach significance among intervention (8.50–9.00, p = 0.307) or control (9.00–13.00, p = 0.127) pharmacies.

Conclusions
Practical strategies training combined with tailored expert feedback enhanced existing pneumococcal immunization services in community pharmacies.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2019.01.006

[Article Title: Mapping pharmacy journals: A lexicographic analysis/ Antonio M. Mendes, Fernanda S. Tonin, Maiko F. Buzzi, Roberto Pontarolo and Fernando Fernandez-Llimos, p. 1464-1471]

Abstract:

Background
Pharmacy journals constitute a heterogeneous group that can be map to identify Pharmacy scientific subareas.

Objective
This study aimed to objectively map Pharmacy journals by means of a lexicographic analysis of the titles of published articles.

Methods
Active journals between 2006 and 2016 containing any of the terms ‘pharmacy’, ‘pharmacist*’, ‘pharmaceut*’, ‘pharmacol*’, or ‘pharmacotherap*’ in their titles were searched in four databases (01/15/2018): Medline, PubMed Central, Science Citation Index expanded/Social Sciences Citation Index expanded (SCIe/SSCIe), and Scopus CiteScore Metrics. The titles of all the articles (Jan-2006 to Dec-2016) in the identified journals were gathered into a single text corpus. The following analyses were performed (Iramuteq 0.7): lexicographic analysis to determine the number, frequency and distribution of active words; descending hierarchical classification (DHC) to categorize active words and journals into lexical classes; factorial correspondence analyses (FCA) to obtain bi- and tri-dimensional graphs.

Results
A total of 285 journals comprising 316,089 articles (median 70.4 articles [IQR 34.0–141.0] per journal per year) were included for the analyses. The journals were indexed in Scopus (90.2%) with a median CiteScore of 1.16 (IQR 0.28–2.55); in SCIe/SSCIe (44.6%) with a median impact factor of 2.410 (IQR 1.629–3.316); and in PubMed (65.7%). The DHC of active words produced three major groups (A, B, C) with two lexical classes each, representing six Pharmacy subareas depicted by the FCA as: Group A comprising ‘Cell Pharmacology’ (20 journals) and ‘Molecular Pharmacology’ (46 journals), Group B with ‘Clinical Pharmacology’ (57 journals) and ‘Pharmacy Practice’ (67 journals), and Group C with ‘Pharmaceutics’ (35 journals) and ‘Pharmaceutical Analysis’ (60 journals). Coverage of the classes in bibliographic databases and impact metrics is unbalanced.

Conclusions
Pharmacy journals that can be objectively classified into six different classes that represent different research subareas with uneven coverage in bibliographic databases.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2019.01.011

[Article Title: The FIP Nanjing Statements: Shaping global pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences education/ Miranda Law, Lina Bader, Nilhan Uzman, Alison Williams and Ian Bates, p. 1472-1475]

Abstract: The quality assurance of pharmacy education is a global goal and indicator of transformative pharmacy workforce development. FIP has published a number of tools, guidelines and resources to support individuals, institutions, nations and regions advance pharmacy education - especially as the state of pharmacy education varies widely in countries around the world. The Nanjing Statements offer a potential additional tool aimed primarily at institutions to evaluate, monitor and advance their educational standards. The upcoming assessment tool being developed by FIP in partnership with Howard University will facilitate its utilization by educators and institutions worldwide and provides a global, practical mechanism of advancing the education of the pharmacy workforce worldwide.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2019.03.013

[Article Title: The role of reflective practice in healthcare professions: Next steps for pharmacy education and practice/ E. Mantzourani, S. Desselle, J. Le, J.M. Lonie and C. Lucas, p. 1476-1479]

Abstract: Reflective practice strategies can enable healthcare practitioners to draw on previous experiences to render more effective judgment in clinical situations. The central argument presented in this commentary is that education programs and structures for continuing professional development (CPD) and revalidation of professionals sharpen their focus regarding self-assessment to identify gaps in skills and attitudes rather than merely as a means of on-going monitoring. Pharmacy undergraduate and professional education need to promote reflective practice strategies that foster self-evaluation to promote pharmacists’ readiness for practice change and advance patient care within rapidly expanding roles and scope of practice.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2019.03.011

[Article Title: Error types with use of medication-related technology: A mixed methods research study/ Shweta R. Shah, Kimberly A. Galt and Kevin T. Fuji, p. 1480-1483]

Abstract:

Background
Health information technology has been integrated throughout the medication use process to enhance safety, quality, and care efficiency. However, technologies have the potential to eliminate or reduce, but also create some new types of errors.

Objective
Assess specific error types before and after the incorporation of two different health information technologies (HITs), e-prescribing and automated dispensing cabinets (ADCs), into pharmacists’ daily work.

Methods
A mixed methods design guided use of a pre-existing database of pharmacist survey responses describing patient safety HIT-related issues in the form of errors prevented and errors observed. In vivo descriptive text responses were converted into error types. Descriptive analysis was performed to characterize the error types associated with each HIT.

Results
Four error types were eliminated with the use of e-prescribing, three new error types emerged, and three error types persisted. With ADC use, four error types were eliminated, three new error types emerged, and three error types persisted.

Conclusion
Each technology has its own error types, and some persist regardless of HIT use. There is a need to determine optimal risk reduction approaches for each unique HIT introduced, and design safety practice improvement for error types unaffected by the introduction of HIT use.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2019.01.010

[Article Title: Consumer tradeoff of advertising claim versus efficacy information in direct-to-consumer prescription drug ads/ Kathryn J. Aikin, Kevin R. Betts, Kathryn Schaefer Ziemer and Aysha Keisler, p. 1484-1488]

Abstract:

Consumers’ decision making about prescription drugs may be influenced by more than thoughts about drug efficacy and the potential for side effects. Choices may be based on tradeoffs among multiple factors, for example, medical condition, risk severity, risk likelihood, product efficacy, and resources. Some information used in tradeoff choices might be derived from marketing efforts by drug manufacturers. How market claims, such as “#1 Prescribed” may affect this tradeoff is an area that has yet to be explored fully.

Objective
Using conjoint analysis techniques, this research examined the tradeoff of market claim and efficacy information in direct-to-consumer (DTC) print advertising for prescription drugs.

Methods
Two hundred fifteen adult participants with a self-reported diagnosis of diabetes were recruited through an online consumer panel. Participants were presented a series of choices. Each choice pair represented a prescription diabetic nerve pain drug with a different efficacy level and one of the two had a market claim of “#1 Prescribed”. Participants indicated which drug they would prefer if they had to choose one. Results showed an advantage of #1 Prescribed. A drug without this claim needed at least 1.23% greater efficacy to be chosen over a drug with this claim.

Conclusions
Study findings align with previous research which found that extrinsic cues can influence consumer product choice, which has implications for optimal medication use.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2019.01.012

[Article Title: Communicating benefits and risks of generic drugs to consumers: Patient and caregiver opinions of two FDA-developed educational materials/ Natalie S. Hohmann, Kimberly B. Garza, Daniel Surry, Richard A. Hansen, Ilene Harris, Zippora Kiptanui, Oluwamurewa Oguntimein, Mitchell M. Frost and Jingjing Qian, p. 1489-1493]

Abstract:

Background
Increasing prescribing and dispensing of generic drugs, compared to brand drugs, may increase patient access to affordable medications. However, little is known about patients' and caregivers' needs and receptiveness regarding the design of educational materials about generic drugs.

Methods
The research used focus groups of patients and caregivers who were students or employees of one university in the Southeastern U.S. to gather input on the optimal content, format and design, delivery channel, and level of satisfaction for two existing, FDA-developed educational materials about generic drugs (infographic and brochure).

Results
Participants stated a need for the materials to modernize their graphics, emphasize generic drug cost-savings for consumers, reduce scare tactics when discussing adverse events, and be disseminated directly from physician's offices and pharmacies. Despite an overall positive impression of the materials, participants wanted more consumer-oriented materials that were tailored to fit the needs of different types of patients/caregivers, including older adults.

Conclusions
This paper discusses how these findings relate to theories of multimedia learning and guidelines for designing health educational materials, as well as implications for the development of tailored generic drug educational materials for use in public health campaigns to improve access to medication therapy.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2019.01.013