TY - JOUR
T1 - Attitudes and perceptions of GPs and community pharmacists towards their role in the prevention of bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaw
T2 - A qualitative study in the North East of England
AU - Sturrock, Andrew
AU - Preshaw, Philip
AU - Hayes, Catherine
AU - Wilkes, Scott
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
PY - 2017/9
Y1 - 2017/9
N2 - Background Bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (BRONJ) is a rare, yet significant, adverse effect of bisphosphonate therapy. A multidisciplinary approach to the prevention of BRONJ is recommended due to the significant morbidity and difficulty treating the condition. Current evidence suggests that both general practitioners (GPs) and community pharmacists have limited knowledge relating to BRONJ and that preventative strategies are rarely implemented. Objective To explore the attitudes and perceptions of GPs and community pharmacists on the risks and preventative strategies for the development of BRONJ. Design Interpretivist methodological approach using qualitative semistructured interviews. Participants 9 community pharmacists and 8 GPs. Setting Primary Care in North East England and Cumbria, UK. Methods Using a Grounded Theory methodology and integrating a process of constant comparison in the iterative enrichment of data sets, semistructured interviews were undertaken, transcribed and analysed using framework analysis. Salient themes were identified and related back to extant literature in the field. Results Four salient and inter-related themes emerged: (1) uncertain knowledge, indicating limited exposure of respondents to BRONJ, and limited awareness of the implications of its diagnosis, risk factors and preventative strategies; (2) patient specific, referring to the complexity of patients, patient education and prioritising aspects of care; (3) wider context, indicating a lack of interdisciplinary communication and referral processes between professions, workload pressures, access and patient receptivity to dental services; and (4) professional, reflecting professional roles and responsibilities, authority and educational initiatives Conclusions Effective communication or collaborative care between GPs and community pharmacists for the prevention of BRONJ is not apparent. Interventions to mitigate against the risk of developing BRONJ and clarity of GP and community pharmacy roles are required.
AB - Background Bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (BRONJ) is a rare, yet significant, adverse effect of bisphosphonate therapy. A multidisciplinary approach to the prevention of BRONJ is recommended due to the significant morbidity and difficulty treating the condition. Current evidence suggests that both general practitioners (GPs) and community pharmacists have limited knowledge relating to BRONJ and that preventative strategies are rarely implemented. Objective To explore the attitudes and perceptions of GPs and community pharmacists on the risks and preventative strategies for the development of BRONJ. Design Interpretivist methodological approach using qualitative semistructured interviews. Participants 9 community pharmacists and 8 GPs. Setting Primary Care in North East England and Cumbria, UK. Methods Using a Grounded Theory methodology and integrating a process of constant comparison in the iterative enrichment of data sets, semistructured interviews were undertaken, transcribed and analysed using framework analysis. Salient themes were identified and related back to extant literature in the field. Results Four salient and inter-related themes emerged: (1) uncertain knowledge, indicating limited exposure of respondents to BRONJ, and limited awareness of the implications of its diagnosis, risk factors and preventative strategies; (2) patient specific, referring to the complexity of patients, patient education and prioritising aspects of care; (3) wider context, indicating a lack of interdisciplinary communication and referral processes between professions, workload pressures, access and patient receptivity to dental services; and (4) professional, reflecting professional roles and responsibilities, authority and educational initiatives Conclusions Effective communication or collaborative care between GPs and community pharmacists for the prevention of BRONJ is not apparent. Interventions to mitigate against the risk of developing BRONJ and clarity of GP and community pharmacy roles are required.
KW - Bisphosphonate-Related Osteonecrosis of the Jaw
KW - General Practitioners
KW - Interdisciplinary Communication
KW - Pharmacists
KW - Qualitative Research
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85030471535&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1136/bmjopen-2017-016047
DO - 10.1136/bmjopen-2017-016047
M3 - Article
C2 - 28965092
AN - SCOPUS:85030471535
SN - 2044-6055
VL - 7
JO - BMJ Open
JF - BMJ Open
IS - 9
M1 - 016047
ER -