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Antimicrobial Stewardship Practices in a Subset of Community Pharmacies across the United States
Background: Antimicrobial stewardship in the community is essential as most antibiotic prescribing occurs in the outpatient setting. Pharmacists are recognized as co-leaders for implementing efforts to improve antimicrobial use. Objectives: the purpose of this study is to evaluate current antimicrob...
Autores principales: | , |
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Formato: | Online Artículo Texto |
Lenguaje: | English |
Publicado: |
MDPI
2023
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Materias: | |
Acceso en línea: | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9965000/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/36827664 http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/pharmacy11010026 |
Sumario: | Background: Antimicrobial stewardship in the community is essential as most antibiotic prescribing occurs in the outpatient setting. Pharmacists are recognized as co-leaders for implementing efforts to improve antimicrobial use. Objectives: the purpose of this study is to evaluate current antimicrobial stewardship practices in community pharmacies across the United States and identify perceptions and challenges faced by community pharmacists. Methods: a survey based on the Center of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Core Elements of Outpatient Antibiotic Stewardship was created and distributed. Results: Sixty-one community pharmacists participated in the survey. The majority of pharmacists practiced in chain pharmacies. Based on the responses, a minority of pharmacies met the requirements of the CDC core elements: commitment (27.9%), action (24.6%), tracking and reporting (14.8%), and education and expertise (23% for providing pharmacist resources and 9.8% for providing patient resources). Regarding perception, 67.9% felt antimicrobial stewardship is important in the community and would participate in antimicrobial stewardship activities if the opportunity was provided (88.5%). Challenges faced by community pharmacists include the lack of time, staff, training, and technology support; pushback from prescribers and patients; and the lack of leadership, financial incentives, funding, and legal requirements. Conclusions: many challenges exist in community pharmacies inhibiting the full potential of pharmacists in implementing antimicrobial stewardship. |
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