Do community pharmacist performance evaluations capture the modern pharmacist’s role? Mapping competencies assessed in Canadian community pharmacy performance evaluation templates against the General Level Framework

Feedback on community pharmacists’ practice is limited after graduation and often comes in the form of annual performance evaluations by pharmacy managers based on company-provided templates. The objective of this study was to examine the relevance of these review processes to all aspects of community pharmacy practice. Competencies evaluated in performance evaluation templates used by pharmacy organizations were mapped to the General Level Framework (GLF)—a tool developed to assess the competency of general-level pharmacy practitioners—and studied in hospital and community practice settings. The competencies were further assessed with consideration of their applicability to the current scope of practice of Canadian community pharmacy practice. Performance evaluation templates from 7 community pharmacy organizations in Canada were obtained and evaluated. Performance evaluations mapped most closely to the GLF tool related to personal competencies (e.g., organization, communication, and teamwork), with the lowest level of congruence observed among competencies specific to patient care activities. Few evaluations considered recent expansions of scope in place across various Canadian provinces, such as ordering and interpreting laboratory tests or pharmacist prescribing. Performance evaluation can be a valuable tool to improve quality of care and the professional development of pharmacists; however, these tools should be reexamined to ensure that feedback on the most valuable aspects of a pharmacist’s professional practice is the focus. As pharmacy practice continues to evolve toward greater direct patient care activities, so too should our evaluation tools align with this increasingly recognized role.