Assessment of community pharmacists' confidence, foundational knowledge, and coordination of care activities in patients with cancer as a chronic condition

Objectives: To develop and deliver a series of structured educational programs to community pharmacists to build on current foundational knowledge of cancer and cancer therapy. The specific objectives were to: 1) develop and provide an educational program focused on oncology pharmacy practice in the community; and 2) measure the program impact on participants' confidence, foundational knowledge, and coordination of cancer care activities. Practice innovation: A structured, in-person, 6-hour educational program tailored for community pharmacists was developed and delivered along with two 20-minute online webinar sessions. The topics identified for the webinars were based on solicited feedback from participants attending the live educational program. Evaluation: A pre- and post-survey was used to evaluate the participant's assessment of the live educational program, and a retrospective survey was used to evaluate the education sessions. Results: Twenty-one pharmacists attended the in-person session. Participants indicated that they were more confident and able to coordinate care after the educational intervention. There was a nonsignificant improvement in foundational knowledge. Conclusion: The educational sessions provided current relevant information for community pharmacists to build on knowledge of oncology pharmacy practice and resources. This increased the pharmacists' confidence to address needs and facilitate coordination of care for individuals with cancer. Delivery of education tailored to community pharmacy is important as the advancing cancer care model continues to adapt with new medications and innovations. (C) 2019 American Pharmacists Association (R). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.