Developing a Tool for Auditing the Quality of Antibiotic Dispensing in Community Pharmacies: A Pilot Study
Maarten Lambert,
Ria Benkő,
Athina Chalkidou,
Jesper Lykkegaard,
Malene Plejdrup Hansen,
Carl Llor,
Pia Touboul,
Indrė Trečiokienė,
Maria-Nefeli Karkana,
Anna Kowalczyk,
Katja Taxis
Affiliations
Maarten Lambert
Unit of PharmacoTherapy, Epidemiology and Economics, Groningen Research Institute of Pharmacy, University of Groningen, 9713 AV Groningen, The Netherlands
Ria Benkő
Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Albert Szent-Györgyi Medical Center, Central Pharmacy and Emergency Care Department, University of Szeged, 6720 Szeged, Hungary
Athina Chalkidou
Section of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, 1353 Copenhagen, Denmark
Jesper Lykkegaard
Audit Project Odense, Research Unit of General Practice, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense, Denmark
Malene Plejdrup Hansen
Audit Project Odense, Research Unit of General Practice, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense, Denmark
Carl Llor
Institut Català de la Salut, Via Roma Health Centre, 08007 Barcelona, Spain
Pia Touboul
Department of Public Health, Nice University Hospital, 06202 Nice, France
Indrė Trečiokienė
Unit of PharmacoTherapy, Epidemiology and Economics, Groningen Research Institute of Pharmacy, University of Groningen, 9713 AV Groningen, The Netherlands
Maria-Nefeli Karkana
Clinic of Social and Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Crete, 71003 Heraklion, Crete, Greece
Anna Kowalczyk
Centre for Family and Community Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Medical University of Lodz, 90-153 Lodz, Poland
Katja Taxis
Unit of PharmacoTherapy, Epidemiology and Economics, Groningen Research Institute of Pharmacy, University of Groningen, 9713 AV Groningen, The Netherlands
Background: The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control describes the community pharmacist as the gatekeeper to the quality of antibiotic use. The pharmacist has the responsibility to guard safe and effective antibiotic use; however, little is known about how this is implemented in practice. Aims: To assess the feasibility of a method to audit the quality of antibiotic dispensing in community pharmacy practice and to explore antibiotic dispensing practices in Greece, Lithuania, Poland, and Spain. Methods: The Audit Project Odense methodology to audit antibiotic dispensing practice was adapted for use in community pharmacy practice. Community pharmacists registered antibiotic dispensing on a specifically developed registration chart and were asked to provide feedback on the registration method. Results: Altogether, twenty pharmacists were recruited in four countries. They registered a total of 409 dispenses of oral antibiotics. Generally, pharmacists were positive about the feasibility of implementing the registration chart in practice. The frequency of checking for allergies, contraindications and interactions differed largely between the four countries. Pharmacists provided little advice to patients. The pharmacists rarely contacted prescribers. Conclusion: This tool seems to make it possible to get a useful picture of antibiotic dispensing patterns in community pharmacies. Dispensing practice does not seem to correspond with EU guidelines according to these preliminary results.
