Attitudes and Perceptions of Healthcare Providers and Medical Students Towards Clinical Pharmacy Services in United Arab Emirates

Purpose: To explore healthcare providers' (HCPs) and medical students’ attitudes to, and perceptions of the pharmaceutical services that clinical pharmacists can provide in United Arab Emirates.
Methods: A total of 535 participants (265 HCPs and 270 medical students) were asked to complete a questionnaire over a period of three months (January through March 2009).
Results: Almost three quarters of the students perceived that the clinical pharmacist is an important part of the healthcare team while 82% believed that clinical pharmacists can help improve the quality of medical care in hospitals. Eighty one percent of medical students expressed confidence in the ability of clinical pharmacists to minimize medication errors. Although slightly more than half of the respondents (53%) reported that they did not have clinical pharmacy services in their institutions, there was substantial willingness among physicians and nurses to cooperate with clinical pharmacists. The majority of physicians (92%) and nurses (87%) expressed the view that the clinical pharmacist is an important integral part of the healthcare team.
Conclusion: The HCPs and medical students in the study setting valued the role of clinical pharmacists in healthcare delivery. However, new developments in pharmacy services in the UAE hospital setting is recommended for adoption in hospitals.

Keywords
Clinical pharmacy services, Pharmaceutical care, Perception, Healthcare providers.