Advanced nurses' practices related to pharmaceutical care in the Czech Republic

Introduction. The use of pharmaceutical products is a very complex part of healthcare, where a variety of healthcare professionals collaborate. Unfortunately, the role of all professional groups does not seem to be entirely clear despite of the high regulation. Evidence suggests that the role of nurses can be much wider than expected and specified by the related policies. Aim. The aim of the study was to explore nurses', physicians' and pharmacists' perspectives of nurses' practices related to pharmaceutical care (PC) in the Czech Republic. Methods. A cross-sectional online survey was conducted. Qualified nurses (629), physicians (69) and pharmacists (39) were questioned about their views on the nurses' involvement in various advanced activities related to PC. Results. Participation on the advanced activities related to PC during the last month was high (providing information and patient education 80%; monitoring medication adherence 72%; monitoring medication effects 56% and participation on prescribing medication 19%). Nurses were most likely to see the investigated PC aspects as part of their nursing tasks when compared to the physicians' or pharmacists' point of view. However, a substantial part of participants believed in the positive impact of nurses' involvement in activities related to PC. On the other side, interprofessional collaboration remains unsatisfactory and communication within an interprofessional team was rated as being very poor. Conclusions. The need to increase the nurses' involvement in PC exists. Optimising formal nurses'competencies, revising the skills mix in different types of workplaces and revising the nursing curricula, as well as improving the interprofessional collaboration, could result in a positive effect on patient outcomes.