Pharmacists’ attitudes toward an integrated patient management system in a public hospital in Southern Africa: A phenomenological exploration

Abstract

The pharmacy departments of hospitals in Botswana use the Integrated Patient Management System to collect and process patients’ treatment data. The rationale for this is to collate quality information for evidence-based decision-making relating to care provision. Yet limited studies have been conducted on the usefulness of this support system in Botswana. The study aimed to explore the attitudes of pharmacy staff toward the Integrated Patient Management System used for collecting and processing data of patients on antiretroviral therapy. It was conducted in a pharmacy department of a public hospital in Gaborone, the capital city of Botswana. A qualitative approach was adopted, underpinned by interpretative phenomenological analysis. Data were collected from 18 purposively selected pharmacy staff using a semi-structured interview format. Data analysis followed a step-by-step thematic approach using interpretative phenomenological analysis framework. Five super-ordinate themes emerged from data analysis: (1) data capturing: an extra-task, (2) knowledge and experience of the Integrated Patient Management system, (3) training and education, (4) mentoring and supervision, and (5) data quality: impact on patients’ care. Pharmacy staff have limited knowledge of the Integrated Patient Management System, including its utilisation in data capturing.