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Objectives: This study aimed to report the protocol and results from the pilot phase of an opportunistic CP-based CD screening program in Barcelona, Spain.Methods: Three strategies according to recruitment approach were designed: passive, active and active-community. The study process consisted of signing the informed consent form, recording the patient’s data in a web-based database system, and performing the rapid test and blood collection on dry paper.Results: Nineteen pharmacies participated and 64 patients were included during the pilot phase of the study. The rapid diagnostic test (RDT) was positive in 2/64 (3.13%) cases. Of the 49 DBS samples that arrived at the laboratory, 22 (45%) were collected incorrectly. After quantitative and qualitative assessment of the program, the dry paper sample and passive strategy were ruled out.Conclusion: DBS sampling and the passive strategy are not suitable for CD screening in community pharmacies. There is a need to expand the number of participating pharmacies and individuals to determine whether conducting a RDT in community pharmacies is an effective screening method to increase access to CD diagnosis in a non-endemic area.

BackgroundShort message service (SMS) based interventions are widely used in healthcare and have shown promising results to improve cancer screening programs. However, more research is still needed to implement SMS in the screening process. We present a study protocol to assess the impact on health and economics of three targeted SMS-based interventions in population-based cancer screening programs.Methods/designThe M-TICs study is a randomized controlled trial with a formal process evaluation. Participants aged 50-69 years identified as eligible from the colorectal cancer (CRC) and breast cancer (BC) screening program of the Catalan Institute of Oncology (Catalonia, Spain) will be randomly assigned to receive standard invitation procedure (control group) or SMS-based intervention to promote participation. Two interventions will be conducted in the CRC screening program: 1) Screening invitation reminder: Those who do not participate in the CRC screening within 6 weeks of invite will receive a reminder (SMS or letter); 2) Reminder to complete and return fecal immunochemical test (FIT) kit: SMS reminder versus no intervention to individuals who have picked up a FIT kit at the pharmacy and they have not returned it after 14 days. The third intervention will be performed in the BC screening program. Women who had been screened previously will receive an SMS invitation or a letter invitation to participate in the screening. As a primary objective we will assess the impact on participation for each intervention. The secondary objectives will be to analyze the cost-effectiveness of the interventions and to assess participants' perceptions.Expected resultsThe results from this randomized controlled trial will provide important empirical evidence for the use of mobile phone technology as a tool for improving population-based cancer screening programs. These results may influence the cancer screening invitation procedure in future routine practice.Trial registrationRegistry: NCT04343950 (04/09/2020); clinicaltrials.gov.

IntroductionThe impact of a pandemic on the mental health of the population is to be expected due to risk factors such as social isolation. Prescription drug abuse and misuse could be an indicator of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health. Community pharmacists play an important role in addressing prescription drug abuse by detecting signs and behaviors that give a clearer indication that a drug abuse problem exists.MethodsA prospective observational study to observe prescription drug abuse was conducted from March 2020 to December 2021 to compare with data obtained in the previous 2 years, through the Medicine Abuse Observatory, the epidemiological surveillance system set up in Catalonia. Information was obtained through a validated questionnaire attached on a web-based system and data collection software. A total of 75 community pharmacies were enrolled in the program.ResultsThe number of notifications during the pandemic period (11.8/100.000 inhabitants) does not indicate a significant change compared with those from pre-pandemic period, when it was 12.5/100.000 inhabitants. However, the number of notifications during the first wave when lockdown was in place stood at 6.1/100,000 inhabitants, significantly lower than in both the pre-pandemic and the whole of the pandemic periods. Regarding the patient's profile, it was observed that the proportion of younger patients (65). The use of benzodiazepines and fentanyl increased.ConclusionsThis study has made it possible to observe the impact of the pandemic caused by COVID-19 on the behavior of patients in terms of use of prescription drugs through analysis of the trends of abuse or misuse and by comparing them with the pre-pandemic period. Overall, the increased detection of benzodiazepines has pointed out stress and anxiety generated by the pandemic.

The use of pharmacogenetics to optimize pharmacotherapy is growing rapidly. This study evaluates the feasibility and operability of a collaborative circuit involving hospital and community pharmacists to implement clopidogrel pharmacogenetics in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. We aimed to enroll patients with a clopidogrel prescription from cardiologists at the collaborating hospital. Community pharmacists collected patients’ pharmacotherapeutic profiles and saliva samples, which were then sent to the hospital for CYP2C19 genotyping. Hospital pharmacists collated the obtained data with patients’ clinical records. Data were analyzed jointly with a cardiologist to assess the suitability of clopidogrel. The provincial pharmacists’ association coordinated the project and provided IT and logistic support. The study began in January 2020. However, it was suspended in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. At that moment, 120 patients had been assessed, 16 of whom met the inclusion criteria and were enrolled in the study. The processing of samples obtained before the pandemic had an average delay of 13.8 ± 5.4 days. A total of 37.5% patients were intermediate metabolizers and 18.8% were ultrarapid metabolizers. No poor metabolizers were detected. Pharmacists rated their experience with a 7.3 ± 2.7 likelihood of recommending that fellow pharmacists participate. The net promoter score among participating pharmacists was +10%. Our results show that the circuit is feasible and operable for further initiatives.

Introducción: En las últimas décadas, tanto la farmacia como el farmacéutico han estado en constante evolución, siendo fundamentales en el control de enfermedades infecciosas. Los objetivos de este artículo son mostrar el papel de los farmacéuticos comunitarios en el control de la COVID-19 y conocer la percepción que tienen sobre su papel en el control de esta pandemia. Métodos: Se realizó y envió una encuesta a 8556 farmacéuticos comunitarios colegiados en Cataluña, donde se les preguntaba por su opinión y la percepción que tenían de su rol en distintas actividades de control de la COVID-19. Se realizó un análisis bivariante y descriptivo de las diferentes variables de la encuesta de manera global y estratificado por grupos de edad (60 años) y por tipo de farmacia (urbana vs otras). Resultados: La tasa de respuesta de la encuesta fue del 14,63% (1253). A pesar de la percepción positiva que tienen los farmacéuticos sobre su rol en la pandemia, el 90,9% de los encuestados considera que la Administración Sanitaria no contó mucho con las farmacias al inicio de esta. Se han encontrado diferencias estadísticamente significativas en determinados aspectos, como por ejemplo en la percepción que el farmacéutico tiene sobre el nivel de información del usuario, o en la frecuencia de encuentros con negacionistas, ambos hechos relacionados con la edad del farmacéutico (p=0,047 y p=0,001 respectivamente). Conclusiones: Las farmacias son establecimientos sanitarios estratégicamente posicionados para realizar actividades de salud pública para colaborar en el control de pandemias. Por lo que el farmacéutico comunitario, en tanto que profesional de la salud, debe ser considerado una pieza más del engranaje para mejorar la eficiencia del sistema sanitario.

Introducción La fibrilación auricular es la arritmia más frecuente asociándose a una elevada morbimortalidad. Aumenta cinco veces la probabilidad de sufrir un ictus isquémico siendo estos los más graves y más incapacitantes. Su diagnóstico y tratamiento precoz en las poblaciones de riesgo mejora su evolución clínica. Objetivo: Cribado oportunista de pulso irregular desde las farmacias comunitarias en pacientes mayores de 60 años como indicador de fibrilación auricular asintomática y evaluación de la idoneidad del proceso en cuanto a su factibilidad e implementación. Material y métodos: Estudio observacional descriptivo transversal basado en la toma de pulso radial a pacientes asintomáticos. Profesionales sanitarios de un total de 240 farmacias comunitarias voluntarias y de 105 centros de salud realizaron la formación necesaria para adherirse a la campaña ‘Pren-te el pols’ de 40 días de duración. Los farmacéuticos comunitarios reclutaron a 4.729 sujetos y 666 fueron excluidos. Finalmente se cribaron 4.063 sujetos mayores de 60 años. Se registraron las diferentes variables en una plataforma online creada para el proyecto en la que se accedía mediante un usuario y contraseña. Además, se evaluó la idoneidad del proceso mediante una encuesta autoadministrada a los farmacéuticos participantes. Resultados: El 5,9% de los sujetos cribados presentaron pulso irregular, siendo la proporción de varones estadísticamente significativa respecto a la de mujeres. La media del grado de satisfacción de los farmacéuticos fue de 8,07/10. Conclusiones: El cribado de pulso irregular para la detección de fibrilación auricular asintomática en farmacias comunitarias presenta un alto grado de factibilidad para su incorporación sistemática en grupos de pacientes susceptibles. Además, incorpora la accesibilidad de la determinación al permitir el cribado de muestras amplias en periodos cortos de tiempo. No obstante, aspectos de gestión compartida, trabajando coordinadamente con los equipos de atención primaria, devienen imprescindibles para evaluar de manera fehaciente su efectividad real en el aumento de la tasa de diagnósticos de ciertas patologías prevalentes.