Rural pharmacy not delivering on its health promotion potential.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the level and perceived quality of health promotion advice received from rural pharmacists.


METHODS
Self-administered written survey on access to and quality of pharmacy services in rural Western Australia completed by rural residents.


METHODS
Rural pharmacy.


METHODS
Four hundred and eighty-three respondents who regularly used a pharmacy.


METHODS
Items in the survey included frequency of receiving prevention advice and satisfaction ratings on health and pharmacy services.


RESULTS
Eighty-eight per cent of respondents had never discussed exercise or diet with their pharmacist and 65% had never discussed preventing health problems. Receiving good prevention advice predicted satisfaction with health services in general but not satisfaction with pharmacy services.


CONCLUSIONS
Pharmacies are being underutilised with respect to their capacity to deliver heath prevention advice and ways to capitalise on this potential need to be investigated.
Sunderland
Bruce
B
School of Pharmacy, Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Western Australia, Australia. b.sunderland@curtin.edu.au
Burrows
Suzanne
S
Joyce
Andrew
A
McManus
Alexandra
A
Maycock
Bruce
B
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control; D003157:Community Pharmacy Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015444:Exercise; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011787:Quality of Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D040242:Risk Reduction Behavior; D019035:Rural Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D014904:Western Australia