E-Drug: Trust & Ethical Laws (Cont)
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Dear E-druggers,
Many interesting points are emerging in this discussion.
I would like to ask another question - do pharmacists have a clear idea of
what they mean when they use the word "counselling"? Do they mean
educating; training; advising; informing and/ or counselling (in the sense
used by psychologists)? In terms of pending legislation in South Africa
regarding the need for face-to-face "counselling", it is essential that
there is common understanding of what is meant.
From the point of view of the patient, the outcome of a pharmacist
counselling session would mean that he/she is empowered to follow the
regimen. Patients would surely expect this of pharmacists - hence the
trust that is placed in them.
The consensus amongst my students was that most pharmacists inform - few
educate their patients and very few certainly counsel.
Does face-to-face "counselling" ensure greater patient safety, quality and
access than provided by mail order deliveries? How many patients have said
that they didn't ask questions because the pharmacist was too busy or
because they felt stupid etc?
Those who have worked in organizations where patient contact has been by
phone will tell you of the many patients that have contacted them for
advice which they couldn't get from the face-to-face contact with their
health care professionals.
Is the insistence on face-to-face "counselling" motivated by the desire to
reduce the competition from mail order or out of a genuine desire to
improve the drug related quality of life of patients? It all comes back to
trust . . .
Billy
Billy Futter
Associate Professor
Faculty of Pharmacy
Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa
email B.Futter@ru.ac.za
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