Interprofessional Collaboration (IPC): A Comparative Analysis of Global Standards for Pharmacy Practice

• At: PPR 2022 (2022)
• Type: Poster
• Poster code: PM-10
• By: DAR, Arzoo (Mid Yorkshire Hospital NHS Trust)
• Co-author(s): Arzoo Dar, Trainee Pharmacist, School of Pharmacy and Medical Sciences, University of Bradford, United Kingdom
  Sue C Jones, Senior Lecturer in Pharmacy Practice, School of Pharmacy and Medical Sciences, University of Bradford, United Kingdom
  
  
• Abstract:

  Background
  Globally, disparities exist in healthcare quality, accessibility and regulation₁. Consequently, few countries have governing bodies overlooking healthcare-professional (HCP) practice₂. Research suggested that HCP regulation depended on nations’ human development index (HDI), gross domestic product (GDP), and safety₃. IPC enables partnership working between HCPs to ensure patient-centred care₄. This study thematically analysed pharmacy professional standards' documents of various countries and investigated whether nations' developmental parameters influenced pharmacy regulation.
  
  Objectives
  • Compare global pharmacy professional standards on IPC.
  • Synthesise a thematic framework to evaluate literature on IPC.
  • Investigate the relationship between HDI, GDP, global peace index (GPI), and pharmacy regulation.
  
  Method
  (N=8) countries were studied based on 2018 HDI classification; (N=4) ‘very high’ (Australia, Hong Kong, Canada, United Kingdom) and (N=4) ‘low’ (Solomon Islands, Haiti, Yemen, South Sudan). Pharmacy professional standards’ documents were screened to extract IPC-related themes via a constant comparative method. This facilitated thematic framework synthesis; ‘pharmacists’ attitudes’ and ‘patient outcomes’ were measures of IPC. Using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA), (N=17) peer-reviewed journal articles from 2010-2019 studying pharmacists in sample countries were selected. Key terms searched on Medline/PubMed databases were: ‘IPC’, ‘pharmacist’ and ‘professional standards’. Literature was then reviewed with reference to the thematic framework and development metrics (HDI/GDP/GPI). This study did not require ethics approval.
  
  Results
  Of (N=8) countries, only HDI-classified ‘very high’ had professional standards’ documents, frequently incorporating IPC. Key themes were ‘shared decision-making’, ‘continuity-of-care’, and ‘effective communication’. (N=7) studies referred to these themes and confirmed IPC benefits: fewer medication-related errors₄. Number of IPC standards and HDI-rank for ‘very high’ countries, except Hong Kong, were positively correlated, suggesting possible economic impact on pharmacy sector progress. (N=2) studies found cultural influences on Hong Kong pharmacists’ attitudes as contributory to a hierarchical than IPC-approach to healthcare provision₅. HDI and GPI had a strong negative correlation (r=-0.83), potentially explaining low pharmacist density and GDP healthcare expenditure in HDI-classified low.
  
  Conclusion
  Results denote that IPC improved patient safety₄. Global differences existed in pharmacists’ attitudes and IPC training. These correlated with growing gaps in HDI and GPI between HDI-classified ‘very high’ and ‘low’ countries. Qualitative analysis highlighted the need for elaboration of ‘continuity-of-care’ and inclusion of ‘understanding roles/responsibilities of team members’ in United Kingdom's professional standards set by the General Pharmaceutical Council. Future work could study 2021/inequality-adjusted HDI data, ‘high’/‘medium’ HDI countries to improve validity alongside COVID-19 impact on GDP and pharmacy practice.
  
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