A national survey of hospice pharmacists and a comparison with international models

Background Pharmacists can contribute to improved patient outcomes, improve medicine knowledge, reduce drug costs and minimise errors. However, their role within hospice-based services is not well described. Objective The objective of this paper was to explore the role of pharmacists within UK hospices. Methods Methods include an online survey and follow-up telephone contact of pharmacists working in UK hospices assessing pharmacist provision, duties, communication, medicine sourcing and training. Results Eighty-nine responses were received from 82 hospices (response rate 50%). Pharmacists had a role in 75% of hospices providing between 6.6 min and 5.5 hrs of pharmacist support per bed per week. The most frequent duty reported was provision of medicines information to the clinical team. Access to patient records varied considerably: 13% had full read and write access to GP records while 29% had no access. Job-specific training had not been received by 36% of the respondents and 47% reported training needs including basic training in palliative care. Conclusions Three-quarters of UK hospices have pharmacy provision, although this falls below the recommended levels in the majority. Hospice pharmacists lack access to training and records. Medicines sourcing for hospices is variable and could provide opportunities for efficiencies with further research.