Evaluation of general practice pharmacists’ role by key stakeholders in England and Australia

Objectives
This study aims to measure expectations and perceptions about the general practice pharmacists’ (GPPs) roles in England and Australia.

Methods
The study is based on the interviews conducted with key stakeholders from England and Australia, including general practitioners, nurses, GPPs, organizational lead and academics. There were a total of 14 participants, 7 each from England and Australia. The participants were involved in a semi-structured, audio-recorded interview, which was later transcribed verbatim, coded and underwent a thematic analysis to extract the general themes, raised by participants’ views and experiences about GPPs’ role.

Key findings
From the transcribed data, the main themes extracted were initial expectations and reservations by key stakeholders, barriers and facilitators, working collaboration, GPPs’ skillset, views on key performance indicators (KPIs), patients’ feedback and the stakeholders’ views on the future of GPPs in England and Australia. The participants from both England and Australia did acknowledge the growing role of GPPs. Few concerns were raised by some participants about aspects like role description, training pathways, prescribing protocols and funding. Despite these concerns, all participants strongly believed that by taking steps to overcome main barriers like funding in Australia and training pathways in England, GPPs could be an ideal professional to bridge the gaps in the general practice framework.

Conclusions
GPPs could be an ideal professional to bridge the gaps in the general practice framework, but steps need to be taken to overcome barriers. Based on the comparative data, recommendations were made on funding structure, role description, prescribing qualification, training pathways and KPIs. These recommendations can be used as guidance for both England and Australia while implementing relative policies in these countries.