Evaluating healthcare professionals' perceptions of dispensing separation and sale of pharmacy medicine in Brunei Darussalam

Rabi'atul Nur Amalia Abdullah Juperi; Hui Poh Goh; Inayat Ur Rehman; Kah Seng Lee; Long Chiau Ming; Andi Hermansyah

doi:10.1186/s40545-023-00594-5

Evaluating healthcare professionals' perceptions of dispensing separation and sale of pharmacy medicine in Brunei Darussalam

J Pharm Policy Pract. 2023 Aug 24;16(1):101. doi: 10.1186/s40545-023-00594-5.

Authors

Rabi'atul Nur Amalia Abdullah Juperi¹, Hui Poh Goh², Inayat Ur Rehman³, Kah Seng Lee⁴, Long Chiau Ming^{1

5

6}, Andi Hermansyah⁷

Affiliations

¹ PAP Rashidah Sa'adatul Bolkiah Institute of Health Sciences, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Gadong, BE1410, Brunei.
² PAP Rashidah Sa'adatul Bolkiah Institute of Health Sciences, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Gadong, BE1410, Brunei. pohhui.goh@ubd.edu.bn.
³ Department of Pharmacy, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, Mardan, 23200, Pakistan.
⁴ Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Cyberjaya, Cyberjaya, Malaysia.
⁵ Department of Pharmacy Practice, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, 60115, Indonesia.
⁶ School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Bandar Sunway, 47500, Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia.
⁷ Department of Pharmacy Practice, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, 60115, Indonesia. andi-h@ff.unair.ac.id.

Abstract

Background: Pharmacy medicine (P) is obtained exclusively from a pharmacy under the supervision of a pharmacist. This study aims to understand the perception of healthcare professionals towards the dispensing separation, as well as the dispensing of pharmacy medicine by community pharmacies to enhance patient health outcomes in Brunei Darussalam.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted between 1st March 2023 and 20th April 2023 among healthcare professionals. A newly designed and validated questionnaire was used. Its face and content validity, along with internal consistency, was adequately established. Convenient sampling was employed to recruit participants for the study. Statistical analysis using one-way ANOVA was performed, considering a p-value < 0.05 as statistically significant.

Results: The study compiled data from 108 participants, comprising doctors (38.9%) and pharmacy technicians (45.4%). Approximately 28.7% of respondents had 11-20 years of healthcare experience, while 25.9% had less than 5 years. Nearly all respondents (98.1%) agreed on the vital role pharmacists and pharmacy technicians play in prescription checks. A significant number of participants (93.5%) agreed that Brunei's current medicine dispensing system needs improvement. The mean total score for the perception of medicine dispensing in Brunei was 3.79 ± 1.103. A statistically significant difference was found between the perception score and the respondents' profession (p = 0.018), but not with their age, experience, or place of work. Respondents' awareness score showed no statistically significant correlation with their profession, age, experience, or place of work.

Conclusion: The study underscores the necessity for more patient-centered care in community pharmacies in Brunei Darussalam. The country's healthcare professionals should recognize the potential advantages of expanding pharmacy services. However, to implement these services successfully, regulatory restrictions and infrastructure limitations must be addressed.

Keywords: Awareness; Dispensing separation; Medicine access; Perception; Pharmacy (P) medicine.