title: Practice nurses and pharmacists: a perspective on the expectation and experience of nurses for future collaboration.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To explore the nurses' expectations and experience about pharmacists in private sector hospitals of Karachi, Pakistan.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional study was conducted from June to September 2012 in five private sector hospitals of Karachi, Pakistan. A convenient sample of nurses (n=377) were enrolled in this study. Data was obtained through a previously validated questionnaire. Responses were statistically analyzed using SPSSv.17.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Questionnaires were returned giving a response rate of 63.6% of which 20 were unusable (n=240). Out of the remaining 220, 24.1% (n=53) responded that they never or rarely interacted with a pharmacist. Respondents who expect pharmacists to collaborate with nurses to solve drug related problems were 45% (n=99). Nurses' experience of pharmacists was not substantial as only 44.5% (n=98) respondents consider pharmacists as a reliable source of clinical drug information.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The role of pharmacists is not well appreciated among nurses in Pakistan. Hence, pharmacists must bridge the observed gap and use a more strategic and consistent approach to build a more positive image in line with other healthcare professionals and in providing patient-centred pharmaceutical care. This research would impress upon the pharmacists the need to redefine their role in the healthcare settings.
authors.affiliation: Pharm D. College of Pharmacy, Ziauddin University, Karachi, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Abdul Nabeel
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.affiliation: Lecturer, UCSI University, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Muhammad Umair
authors.initials: MU
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.affiliation: Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmaceutics, University of Karachi, Karachi, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Muhammad Harris
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Shoaib
authors.affiliation: Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmaceutics, University of Karachi, Karachi, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Rabia Ismail
authors.initials: RI
authors.lastname: Yousuf
authors.affiliation: Pharm D. College of Pharmacy, Ziauddin University, Karachi, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Salman Ali
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Mir
keywords: Healthcare; Nurse; Perception; Pharmacist