Essential Attributes for the Community Pharmacist as Care Provider

Objective. To identify skills and attributes that pharmacy students need upon graduation if planning to pursue a career path as a community pharmacy practice care provider. Methods. In-depth interviews with community pharmacy stakeholders were conducted, audio-recorded, and transcribed. Interview transcripts were thematically analyzed to identify the skills and attributes pharmacy students need upon graduation to be prepared to practice as a community pharmacy-based care provider. Results. Forty-two participants were interviewed. Identified attributes that were deemed transformative for community pharmacy practice included three behaviors, five skills, and two knowledge areas. Behavioral attributes needed by future community pharmacists were an approach to practice that is forward thinking and patient-centric, and having a provider mentality. The most commonly mentioned skill was the ability to provide direct patient care, with other skills being organizational competence, communication, building relationships, and management and leadership. Critical knowledge areas were treatment guidelines and drug knowledge, and regulatory and payer requirements. Additional skills needed by community pharmacy-based providers included identification and treatment of acute self-limiting illnesses and monitoring activities for chronic health conditions. Conclusion. Essential attributes of community pharmacists that will allow practice transformation to take place include behaving in a forward-thinking, patient-centric manner; displaying a provider mentality through use of effective communication to build relationships with patients and other providers, and learning how to meet regulatory and payer requirements for prescribers. These attributes should be fostered during the student’s experiential curriculum.