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Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) Apr 2021The general population has increasingly become the key contributor to irrational antibiotic use in China, which fuels the emergence of antibiotic resistance. This study... (Review)
Review
The general population has increasingly become the key contributor to irrational antibiotic use in China, which fuels the emergence of antibiotic resistance. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of the general population's irrational use behaviors of antibiotics and identify the potential reasons behind them. A systematic review and meta-analysis were performed concerning four main behaviors relevant to easy access and irrational use of antibiotics and common misunderstandings among the population about antibiotics. Four databases were searched, and studies published before 28 February 2021 were retrieved. Medium and high-level quality studies were included. Random effects meta-analysis was performed to calculate the prevalence of the general population's irrational behaviors and misunderstandings relevant to antibiotic use. A total of 8468 studies were retrieved and 78 met the criteria and were included. The synthesis showed the public can easily obtain unnecessary antibiotics, with an estimated 37% (95% CI: 29-46) of the population demanding antibiotics from physicians and 47% (95% CI: 38-57) purchasing non-prescription antibiotics from pharmacies. This situation is severe in the western area of China. People also commonly inappropriately use antibiotics by not following antibiotic prescriptions (pooled estimate: 48%, 95% CI: 41-55) and preventatively use antibiotics for non-indicated diseases (pooled estimate: 35%, 95% CI: 29-42). Misunderstanding of antibiotic use was also popular among people, including incorrect antibiotic recognition, wrong antibiotic use indication, inappropriate usage, and ignorance of potential adverse outcomes. Over-and inappropriate use of antibiotics is evident in China and a multifaceted antibiotic strategy targeted at the general population is urgently required.
PubMed: 33925971
DOI: 10.3390/antibiotics10050497 -
CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association... Oct 2023Higher doses of opioids, mental health comorbidities, co-prescription of sedatives, lower socioeconomic status and a history of opioid overdose have been reported as... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
BACKGROUND
Higher doses of opioids, mental health comorbidities, co-prescription of sedatives, lower socioeconomic status and a history of opioid overdose have been reported as risk factors for opioid overdose; however, the magnitude of these associations and their credibility are unclear. We sought to identify predictors of fatal and nonfatal overdose from prescription opioids.
METHODS
We systematically searched MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, PsycINFO and Web of Science up to Oct. 30, 2022, for observational studies that explored predictors of opioid overdose after their prescription for chronic pain. We performed random-effects meta-analyses for all predictors reported by 2 or more studies using odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).
RESULTS
Twenty-eight studies (23 963 716 patients) reported the association of 103 predictors with fatal or nonfatal opioid overdose. Moderate- to high-certainty evidence supported large relative associations with history of overdose (OR 5.85, 95% CI 3.78-9.04), higher opioid dose (OR 2.57, 95% CI 2.08-3.18 per 90-mg increment), 3 or more prescribers (OR 4.68, 95% CI 3.57-6.12), 4 or more dispensing pharmacies (OR 4.92, 95% CI 4.35-5.57), prescription of fentanyl (OR 2.80, 95% CI 2.30-3.41), current substance use disorder (OR 2.62, 95% CI 2.09-3.27), any mental health diagnosis (OR 2.12, 95% CI 1.73-2.61), depression (OR 2.22, 95% CI 1.57-3.14), bipolar disorder (OR 2.07, 95% CI 1.77-2.41) or pancreatitis (OR 2.00, 95% CI 1.52-2.64), with absolute risks among patients with the predictor ranging from 2-6 per 1000 for fatal overdose and 4-12 per 1000 for nonfatal overdose.
INTERPRETATION
We identified 10 predictors that were strongly associated with opioid overdose. Awareness of these predictors may facilitate shared decision-making regarding prescribing opioids for chronic pain and inform harm-reduction strategies SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: Open Science Framework (https://osf.io/vznxj/).
Topics: Humans; Analgesics, Opioid; Chronic Pain; Drug Overdose; Opiate Overdose; Prescriptions; Observational Studies as Topic
PubMed: 37871953
DOI: 10.1503/cmaj.230459 -
BMJ Open Feb 2016To systematically review the effectiveness of community pharmacy-delivered interventions for alcohol reduction, smoking cessation and weight management. (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
Community pharmacy-delivered interventions for public health priorities: a systematic review of interventions for alcohol reduction, smoking cessation and weight management, including meta-analysis for smoking cessation.
OBJECTIVES
To systematically review the effectiveness of community pharmacy-delivered interventions for alcohol reduction, smoking cessation and weight management.
DESIGN
Systematic review and meta-analyses. 10 electronic databases were searched from inception to May 2014.
STUDY DESIGN
randomised and non-randomised controlled trials; controlled before/after studies, interrupted times series.
INTERVENTION
any relevant intervention set in a community pharmacy, delivered by the pharmacy team. No restrictions on duration, country, age, or language.
RESULTS
19 studies were included: 2 alcohol reduction, 12 smoking cessation and 5 weight management. Study quality rating: 6 'strong', 4 'moderate' and 9 'weak'. 8 studies were conducted in the UK, 4 in the USA, 2 in Australia, 1 each in 5 other countries. Evidence from 2 alcohol-reduction interventions was limited. Behavioural support and/or nicotine replacement therapy are effective and cost-effective for smoking cessation: pooled OR was 2.56 (95% CI 1.45 to 4.53) for active intervention vs usual care. Pharmacy-based interventions produced similar weight loss compared with active interventions in other primary care settings; however, weight loss was not sustained longer term in a range of primary care and commercial settings compared with control. Pharmacy-based weight management interventions have similar provider costs to those delivered in other primary care settings, which are greater than those delivered by commercial organisations. Very few studies explored if and how sociodemographic or socioeconomic variables moderated intervention effects. Insufficient information was available to examine relationships between effectiveness and behaviour change strategies, implementation factors, or organisation and delivery of interventions.
CONCLUSIONS
Community pharmacy-delivered interventions are effective for smoking cessation, and demonstrate that the pharmacy is a feasible option for weight management interventions. Given the potential reach, effectiveness and associated costs of these interventions, commissioners should consider using community pharmacies to help deliver public health services.
Topics: Age Factors; Alcohol Drinking; Behavior Therapy; Community Pharmacy Services; Cost-Benefit Analysis; Delivery of Health Care; Humans; Sex Factors; Smoking Cessation; Socioeconomic Factors; United States; Weight Loss
PubMed: 26928025
DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2015-009828 -
The Consultant Pharmacist : the Journal... Feb 2017To conduct a systematic literature review to determine what telemedicine services are provided by pharmacists and the impact of these services in the nursing facility... (Review)
Review
OBJECTIVE
To conduct a systematic literature review to determine what telemedicine services are provided by pharmacists and the impact of these services in the nursing facility setting.
DATA SOURCES
MEDLINE®, Scopus®, and Embase® databases.
STUDY SELECTION
The terms "telemedicine" or "telehealth" were combined by "and" with the terms "pharmacist" or "pharmacy" to identify pharmacists' use of telemedicine. Also, "telepharmacy" was added as a search term. The initial search yielded 322 results. These abstracts were reviewed by two individuals independently, for selection of articles that discussed telemedicine and involvement of a pharmacist, either as the primary user of the service or as part of an interprofessional health care team. Those abstracts discussing the pharmacist service for purpose of dispensing or product preparation were excluded.
DATA EXTRACTION
A description of pharmacists' services provided and the impact on resident care.
DATA SYNTHESIS
Only three manuscripts met inclusion criteria. One was a narrative proposition of the benefits of using telemedicine by senior care pharmacists. Two published original research studies indirectly assessed the pharmacists' use of telemedicine in the nursing facility through an anticoagulation program and an osteoporosis management service. Both services demonstrated improvement in patient care.
CONCLUSION
There is a general paucity of practice-related research to demonstrate potential benefits of pharmacists' services incorporating telemedicine. Telemedicine may be a resource-efficient approach to enhance pharmacist services in the nursing facility and improve resident care.
Topics: Faculty, Nursing; Humans; Pharmaceutical Services; Pharmacists; Telemedicine
PubMed: 28569660
DOI: 10.4140/TCP.n.2017.93 -
BMC Cancer Mar 2018The WHO recognises that community pharmacists are the most accessible healthcare professionals to the general public. Most patients regularly visit community pharmacies... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
The WHO recognises that community pharmacists are the most accessible healthcare professionals to the general public. Most patients regularly visit community pharmacies for health information and also seek advice from pharmacists with respect to signs and symptoms of cancer. As readily accessible health care professionals, community pharmacists are also in the best position to include cancer-screening initiatives into their practice. Pharmacists are therefore in a good position to raise awareness when they counsel people who buy over-the-counter medication for the control of possible cancer-related symptoms. The aim of this review was to critically appraise evidence gathered from studies that; (1) explore or assess knowledge of community pharmacist on signs and symptoms of cancer, (2) explore or assess knowledge of community pharmacist on cancer screening.
METHODS
EMBASE (ovid), CINAHL (EBSCOhost) and MEDLINE (EBSCOhost) were systematically searched for studies conducted between 2005 to July 2017. Studies that focused on knowledge of community pharmacist in cancer screening, signs and symptoms were included.
RESULTS
A total of 1538 articles were identified from the search, of which 4 out of the 28 potentially relevant abstracts were included in the review. Findings of the selected studies revealed lack of sufficient knowledge on breast cancer screening, signs and symptoms. Both studies attributed knowledge limitation as the cause of reason for the key findings of their studies.
CONCLUSION
The selected studies focused largely on breast cancer, which hinder the generalizability and transferability of the findings. Hence there is a need for more studies to be conducted in this area to draw a better conclusion.
Topics: Awareness; Breast Neoplasms; Female; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Humans; Patient Acceptance of Health Care; Pharmacists
PubMed: 29548307
DOI: 10.1186/s12885-018-4195-y -
Current Medical Research and Opinion Jan 2015Inadequate medication adherence is a widespread problem that contributes to increased chronic disease complications and health care expenditures. Packaging interventions... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
OBJECTIVE
Inadequate medication adherence is a widespread problem that contributes to increased chronic disease complications and health care expenditures. Packaging interventions using pill boxes and blister packs have been widely recommended to address the medication adherence issue. This meta-analysis review determined the overall effect of packaging interventions on medication adherence and health outcomes. In addition, we tested whether effects vary depending on intervention, sample, and design characteristics.
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
Extensive literature search strategies included examination of 13 computerized databases and 19 research registries, hand searches of 57 journals, and author and ancestry searches. Eligible studies included either pill boxes or blister packaging interventions to increase medication adherence. Primary study characteristics and outcomes were reliably coded. Random-effects analyses were used to calculate overall effect sizes and conduct moderator analyses.
RESULTS
Data were synthesized across 22,858 subjects from 52 reports. The overall mean weighted standardized difference effect size for two-group comparisons was 0.593 (favoring treatment over control), which is consistent with the mean of 71% adherence for treatment subjects compared to 63% among control subjects. We found using moderator analyses that interventions were most effective when they used blister packs and were delivered in pharmacies, while interventions were less effective when studies included older subjects and those with cognitive impairment. Methodological moderator analyses revealed significantly larger effect sizes in studies reporting continuous data outcomes instead of dichotomous results and in studies using pharmacy refill medication adherence measures compared with studies with self-report measures.
CONCLUSIONS
Overall, meta-analysis findings support the use of packaging interventions to effectively increase medication adherence. Limitations of the study include the exclusion of packaging interventions other than pill boxes and blister packs, evidence of publication bias, and primary study sparse reporting of health outcomes and potentially interesting moderating variables such as the number of prescribed medications.
Topics: Drug Packaging; Humans; Medication Adherence
PubMed: 25333709
DOI: 10.1185/03007995.2014.978939 -
International Journal of Chronic... 2020This study aimed 1) to identify and analyse the professional services provided by community pharmacists for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) management; and... (Review)
Review
PURPOSE
This study aimed 1) to identify and analyse the professional services provided by community pharmacists for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) management; and 2) to develop a logic model for community pharmacy practice for COPD management.
METHODS
A systematic review with a logic model was applied. English-language databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and Scopus) and a Chinese database (CNKI) were searched for articles published between January 2009 and June 2019. Studies concerning pharmacists and COPD were identified to screen for studies that focused on professional services provided at a community pharmacy level. Evidence on economic, clinical, and humanistic outcomes of interventions was summarized.
RESULTS
Twenty-five articles were included in this study. Four categories of COPD-related interventions by community pharmacists were identified: 1) primary prevention; 2) early detection; 3) therapy management; and 4) long-term health management. The most common outputs examined were improvement in inhaler technique, medication adherence, and rate of smoking cessation. The clinical (improved quality of life, reduced frequency and severity of symptoms and exacerbation), humanistic (patient satisfaction), and economic (overall healthcare costs) outcomes were tested for some interventions through clinical studies. Contextual factors concerning pharmacists, healthcare providers, patients, facilities, clinic context, and socio-economic aspects were also identified.
CONCLUSION
Studies in the literature have proposed and examined different components of professional services provided by community pharmacists for COPD management. However, relationships among outcomes, comprehensive professional services of community pharmacists, and contextual factors have not been systematically tested. More well-designed, rigorous studies with more sensitive and specific outcomes measures need to be conducted to assess the effect of community pharmacy practice for COPD management.
Topics: Community Pharmacy Services; Humans; Logic; Pharmacies; Pharmacists; Professional Role; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive; Quality of Life
PubMed: 32821091
DOI: 10.2147/COPD.S254477 -
Perspectives in Public Health Mar 2022This systematic review aimed to provide new insights into how pharmacy spaces, or the , are experienced by pharmacy service users and staff. The review sought to...
AIM
This systematic review aimed to provide new insights into how pharmacy spaces, or the , are experienced by pharmacy service users and staff. The review sought to identify environmental factors which may influence service users' and staff participation in community-based pharmacy health services.
METHOD
Ten databases were searched for English language publications, using a combination of search terms relating to pharmacy service users and staff; pharmacy spaces; and health and social care outcomes. Data from the final selected studies were extracted, thematically analysed using a narrative approach and the quality of each study assessed using the Integrated quality Criteria for the Review of Multiple Study designs (ICROMS).
RESULTS
80 articles reporting 80 studies published between 1994 and 2020 were identified; they were from 28 countries, involving around 3234 community pharmacies, 13,615 pharmacy service users, 5056 pharmacists and 78 pharmacy health staff. Most studies (94%) met the ICROMS minimum score, and half did not meet the mandatory quality criteria. Four themes likely to influence service users' and staff experiences of pharmacy health services were identified: (1) privacy; (2) experience of the physical environment; (3) professional image; and (4) risk of error.
CONCLUSION
To optimise the delivery and experience of pharmacy health services, these spaces should be made more engaging. Future applied research could focus on optimising inclusive pharmacy design features.
Topics: Community Pharmacy Services; Humans; Pharmacies; Pharmacists
PubMed: 35274562
DOI: 10.1177/17579139221080608 -
Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection... Jun 2024Antibiotic self-medication is a global public health concern contributing to antibiotic resistance. This systematic review and meta-analysis aim to assess the prevalence... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
INTRODUCTION
Antibiotic self-medication is a global public health concern contributing to antibiotic resistance. This systematic review and meta-analysis aim to assess the prevalence of antibiotic self-medication and its associated factors in Ethiopia.
METHODS
A comprehensive search of electronic databases was conducted from MEDLINE (PubMed), Scopus, Google Scholar and Web of Science to identify relevant studies published between 2000 and 2024. Adult households, undergraduate university students and health care professionals who had taken antibiotics without a prescription in the household setting were included in this review. The primary outcome of this review is antibiotic self- medication. The random-effects model was used to estimate pooled prevalence rates. The outcome measure was analyzed with STATA version 17 software.
RESULTS
A total of nine studies were included in the Meta-analysis, comprising a sample size of 5908 participants. The pooled prevalence of antibiotic self-medication among Ethiopians was found to be 46.14 with 95% Confidence Interval [35.71, 56.57]. The most frequently used classes of self-medicated antibiotics were penicillins, followed by tetracyclines. Community pharmacies were the source of information that individuals utilized. The most common reported reasons for antibiotic self-medication include previous experience of treating a similar illness, to save cost, lack of time and avoiding waiting time for medical services. Participants having less than high school educational level was the most commonly reported factor associated with self-medication antibiotics.
CONCLUSION
Antibiotic self-medication is a prevalent practice in Ethiopia. This underscores the need for targeted interventions such as educating people about the risks associated with using antibiotics without medical guidance, which results in a reduction in antibiotic resistance.
Topics: Ethiopia; Self Medication; Humans; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Prevalence; Adult
PubMed: 38853267
DOI: 10.1186/s13756-024-01417-1