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Medication therapy management (MTM) is provided by pharmacists and other healthcare providers, improves patient health status, and increases the collaboration of MTM providers with others. However, little is known about pharmacists' intention to provide MTM services in Saudi Arabia. This study aimed to predict the pharmacists' willingness in this nation to commit to providing MTM services there. This study used a cross-sectional questionnaire based on the theory of planned behaviour (TPB). The survey was distributed to 149 pharmacists working in hospital and community pharmacies. It included items measuring pharmacist attitudes, intentions, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, knowledge about the provision of MTM services, and other sociodemographic and pharmacy practice-related items. The pharmacists had a positive attitude towards MTM services (mean = 6.15 ± 1.12) and strong intention (mean = 6.09 ± 1.15), highly perceived social pressure to provide those services (mean = 5.42 ± 1.03), strongly perceived control over providing those services (mean = 4.98 ± 1.05), and had good MTM knowledge (mean = 5.03 ± 1.00). Pharmacists who completed a pharmacy residency programme and had good knowledge of MTM services and a positive attitude towards them usually strongly intended to provide MTM services. Thus, encouraging pharmacists to complete pharmacy residency programmes and educating them about the importance and provision of MTM services will enhance their motivation to provide them.

Objectives: To (1) examine the impact of the Comprehensive Health Management Patient Service (CHaMPS) on unplanned hospital admissions and emergency department (ED) visits in patients with chronic conditions, (2) describe the number and type of pharmacist interventions, and (3) determine the cost savings of CHaMPS., Study Design: Retrospective, cross-sectional design with a matched comparator group., Methods: CHaMPS integrated pharmacists within family medicine clinics to optimize medication use among patients with chronic conditions. Outcomes were the change in unplanned hospital admissions and ED visits from baseline to 180- and 365-day postintervention periods between the CHaMPS and propensity-matched comparator groups. Descriptive, bivariate (t tests and McNemar tests), and multivariate (general linear models) statistical analyses were used. Pharmacist interventions are reported and a cost-benefit analysis was conducted., Results: A total of 624 patients (312 in the CHaMPS group and 312 in the comparator group) were included. Unplanned hospital admissions decreased in the CHaMPS group and increased in the comparator group (not significant). ED visits remained stable in the CHaMPS group but increased significantly in the comparator group, resulting in a significant mean change in ED visits between the groups at the 180- and 365-day postintervention periods (P = .03 for both periods). Pharmacists provided a total of 5705 medication-related problem, education, and medication reconciliation interventions (18.3 per patient). The benefit-cost ratio ranged from 2.1:1 to 2.6:1., Conclusions: CHaMPS achieved its goals by demonstrating a positive impact on ED visits and a benefit-cost ratio greater than 1.0. The cost savings of the embedded pharmacist model are most beneficial from a payer perspective or an accountable care organization approach to healthcare.

Telepharmacy is a technology-based service that provides promoted services such as counseling, medication administration and compounding, drug therapy monitoring, and prescription review. It is unclear whether hospital pharmacists possess the necessary knowledge, attitudes, and willingness to practice telepharmacy. The current study sought to investigate Saudi Arabian hospital pharmacists' understanding, attitudes, and level of preparedness for telepharmacy services. A total of 411 pharmacists responded to the survey. Only 43.33% of the respondents agreed that telepharmacy is available in Saudi Arabia and 36.67% of the respondents agreed that patients in rural areas can have more medication access and information via telepharmacy. Only 29.33% of pharmacists agreed that telepharmacy improves patient medication adherence, and about 34.00% of the pharmacists agreed that telepharmacy saves patients money and time by eliminating the need for them to travel to healthcare facilities. This research found that hospital pharmacists were unsure of their level of knowledge, their attitude toward telepharmacy, and their willingness to incorporate it into their future pharmacy practices. To ensure that tomorrow's pharmacists have the skills they need to provide telepharmacy services, telepharmacy practice models must be incorporated into the educational programs that prepare them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Work stress occurs when employees have to deal with pressures that do not align with their skills, knowledge, or expectations. This study aimed to assess the impact of work stress on job satisfaction among pharmacists in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, a cross-sectional, self-administered, paper-based survey was conducted between August 2019 and October 2020 using three scales. Descriptive and analytical statistical analyses were performed. A linear regression analysis was used to determine the relationship between occupational stress and job satisfaction among Saudi pharmacists. A total of 284 questionnaires were completed. Multiple linear regression analyses showed a significant negative relationship between occupational stress and job satisfaction (β = −0.456, 95% CI, −0.561 to −0.350), a positive relationship between confirmation and satisfaction (β = 0.147, 95% CI, 0.005 to –0.290), and a negative relationship between working in hospitals and job satisfaction (β= −3.009; 95% CI, −5.424 to −0.593) when other variables were kept constant. The results of this study indicated that occupational stress and satisfaction negatively influenced pharmacists, whereas confirmation was associated with better satisfaction. Moreover, hospital pharmacists had lower job satisfaction. The job satisfaction of pharmacists may help improve medication safety and ensure an adequate pharmacist workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]