Pharmacists practising in family medicine groups: An evaluation 2 years after experiencing a virtual community of practice

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Abstract

Background:

In 2018, a virtual community of practice (CoP) for pharmacists working in family medicine groups (FMGs) in Quebec province was developed. The aim of this CoP—called Réseau Québécois des Pharmaciens GMF (RQP GMF)—was to foster best practices by supporting FMG pharmacists. This study assesses the processes and outcomes of this CoP 2 years after its creation.

Methods:

We performed a cross-sectional web-based study from March to May 2020. All FMG pharmacists who were registered as members of the RQP GMF ( n = 326) were sent an invitation via a newsletter. The link to the questionnaire was also publicized in the CoP Facebook group. The questionnaire comprised a 38-item validated instrument assessing 8 dimensions of the CoP. A descriptive analysis was performed.

Results:

A total of 112 FMG pharmacists (34.4%) completed the questionnaire. Respondents agreed that the RQP GMF was a joint enterprise (mean score, 4.18/5), that members shared their knowledge (mean score, 3.94/5) and engaged mutually (mean score, 3.50/5) and that the RQP GMF provided support (mean score, 3.92/5) and capacity building (mean score, 4.01/5). In general, they were satisfied with the implementation process (mean score, 3.68/5) and with activities proposed (mean score, 3.79/5). A lower proportion of respondents agreed that their participation in the RQP GMF generated external impacts, which led to a smaller mean score (3.37/5) for this dimension.

Conclusion:

The RQP GMF, one of the first communities of practice for pharmacists practising in family medicine groups, attained most of the objectives initially intended by the CoP. These results will facilitate the adaptation of processes and activities to better fulfil members’ needs. Can Pharm J (Ott) 2021;154:xx-xx.

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Evolution of Wenger's concept of community of practice

Linda C. Li, Jeremy M. Grimshaw, Camilla Nielsen … (2009)

Background In the experience of health professionals, it appears that interacting with peers in the workplace fosters learning and information sharing. Informal groups and networks present good opportunities for information exchange. Communities of practice (CoPs), which have been described by Wenger and others as a type of informal learning organization, have received increasing attention in the health care sector; however, the lack of uniform operating definitions of CoPs has resulted in considerable variation in the structure and function of these groups, making it difficult to evaluate their effectiveness. Objective To critique the evolution of the CoP concept as based on the germinal work by Wenger and colleagues published between 1991 and 2002. Discussion CoP was originally developed to provide a template for examining the learning that happens among practitioners in a social environment, but over the years there have been important divergences in the focus of the concept. Lave and Wenger's earliest publication (1991) centred on the interactions between novices and experts, and the process by which newcomers create a professional identity. In the 1998 book, the focus had shifted to personal growth and the trajectory of individuals' participation within a group (i.e., peripheral versus core participation). The focus then changed again in 2002 when CoP was applied as a managerial tool for improving an organization's competitiveness. Summary The different interpretations of CoP make it challenging to apply the concept or to take full advantage of the benefits that CoP groups may offer. The tension between satisfying individuals' needs for personal growth and empowerment versus an organization's bottom line is perhaps the most contentious of the issues that make CoPs difficult to cultivate. Since CoP is still an evolving concept, we recommend focusing on optimizing specific characteristics of the concept, such as support for members interacting with each other, sharing knowledge, and building a sense of belonging within networks/teams/groups. Interventions that facilitate relationship building among members and that promote knowledge exchange may be useful for optimizing the function of these groups.

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How Health Care Professionals Use Social Media to Create Virtual Communities: An Integrative Review

Kaye Rolls, Margaret Hansen, Debra Jackson … (2016)

Background Prevailing health care structures and cultures restrict intraprofessional communication, inhibiting knowledge dissemination and impacting the translation of research into practice. Virtual communities may facilitate professional networking and knowledge sharing in and between health care disciplines. Objectives This study aimed to review the literature on the use of social media by health care professionals in developing virtual communities that facilitate professional networking, knowledge sharing, and evidence-informed practice. Methods An integrative literature review was conducted to identify research published between 1990 and 2015. Search strategies sourced electronic databases (PubMed, CINAHL), snowball references, and tables of contents of 3 journals. Papers that evaluated social media use by health care professionals (unless within an education framework) using any research design (except for research protocols or narrative reviews) were included. Standardized data extraction and quality assessment tools were used. Results Overall, 72 studies were included: 44 qualitative (including 2 ethnographies, 26 qualitative descriptive, and 1 Q-sort) and 20 mixed-methods studies, and 8 literature reviews. The most common methods of data collection were Web-based observation (n=39), surveys (n=23), interviews (n=11), focus groups (n=2), and diaries (n=1). Study quality was mixed. Social media studied included Listservs (n=22), Twitter (n=18), general social media (n=17), discussion forums (n=7), Web 2.0 (n=3), virtual community of practice (n=3), wiki (n=1), and Facebook (n=1). A range of health care professionals were sampled in the studies, including physicians (n=24), nurses (n=15), allied health professionals (n=14), followed by health care professionals in general (n=8), a multidisciplinary clinical specialty area (n=9), and midwives (n=2). Of 36 virtual communities, 31 were monodiscipline for a discrete clinical specialty. Population uptake by the target group ranged from 1.6% to 29% (n=4). Evaluation using related theories of “planned behavior” and the “technology acceptance model” (n=3) suggests that social media use is mediated by an individual’s positive attitude toward and accessibility of the media, which is reinforced by credible peers. The most common reason to establish a virtual community was to create a forum where relevant specialty knowledge could be shared and professional issues discussed (n=17). Most members demonstrated low posting behaviors but more frequent reading or accessing behaviors. The most common Web-based activity was request for and supply of specialty-specific clinical information. This knowledge sharing is facilitated by a Web-based culture of collectivism, reciprocity, and a respectful noncompetitive environment. Findings suggest that health care professionals view virtual communities as valuable knowledge portals for sourcing clinically relevant and quality information that enables them to make more informed practice decisions. Conclusions There is emerging evidence that health care professionals use social media to develop virtual communities to share domain knowledge. These virtual communities, however, currently reflect tribal behaviors of clinicians that may continue to limit knowledge sharing. Further research is required to evaluate the effects of social media on knowledge distribution in clinical practice and importantly whether patient outcomes are significantly improved.

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The challenge of integrating community pharmacists into the primary health care team: a case study of local pharmaceutical services (LPS) pilots and interprofessional collaboration.

Fay Bradley, Bonnie Sibbald, Karen Hassell … (2008)

The aim of this paper is to investigate interprofessional collaboration between general practitioners (GPs) and pharmacists involved in the delivery of enhanced pharmacy services under the local pharmaceutical services (LPS) contract in England. Previous research suggests that a number of interprofessional barriers exist between community pharmacists and GPs which hinders the integration of community pharmacists into the primary health care team (PHCT). One of the aims of the LPS contract, introduced in England in 2002 as an alternative to national contractual arrangements, was to enable pharmacists to work more closely with other health care professionals. A two-stage survey was distributed to all pharmacists involved in the first wave of LPS and in-depth interviews undertaken with pharmacists and GPs at six of the LPS sites. Overall the level to which the LPS pharmacists felt integrated into the PHCT did not substantially increase with the introduction of LPS, although co-location was reported to have facilitated integration. New relationships were formed with GPs and existing ones strengthened. A good existing working relationship with GPs was found to be an important factor in the successful operation of the pilots as many were dependent on GPs for patient referrals. The findings suggest that establishing interprofessional collaboration between GPs and pharmacists is a piecemeal process, with a reliance on goodwill and trust-based relationships.

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Author and article information

Contributors

Line Guénette:

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9769-7550

Anne Maheu

Marie-Claude Vanier

Nicolas Dugré

Léonie Rouleau

Jacynthe Roy-Petit

Lyne Lalonde

Journal

Journal ID (nlm-ta): Can Pharm J (Ott)

Journal ID (iso-abbrev): Can Pharm J (Ott)

Journal ID (publisher-id): CPH

Journal ID (hwp): spcph

Title: Canadian Pharmacists Journal : CPJ

Publisher: SAGE Publications (Sage CA: Los Angeles, CA )

ISSN (Print): 1715-1635

ISSN (Electronic): 1913-701X

Publication date (Electronic): 15 October 2021

Publication date Collection: Jan-Feb 2022

Publication date PMC-release: 15 October 2021

Volume: 155

Issue: 1

Pages: 39-49

Affiliations

[1-17151635211049235]Faculty of Pharmacy, Laval University

[2-17151635211049235]CHU de Québec Research Centre, Québec City

[3-17151635211049235]Centre intégré universitaire de santé et de services sociaux de la Capitale-Nationale, Québec City

[4-17151635211049235]Centre intégré universitaire de santé et de services sociaux du Nord-de-l’île-de-Montréal

[5-17151635211049235]Faculté de pharmacie, Université de Montréal, Montréal

[6-17151635211049235]Faculté de pharmacie, Université de Montréal, Montréal

[7-17151635211049235]Centre intégré de santé et de services sociaux de Laval, Laval

[8-17151635211049235]Centre intégré universitaire de santé et de services sociaux du Nord-de-l’île-de-Montréal

[9-17151635211049235]Faculté de pharmacie, Université de Montréal, Montréal

[10-17151635211049235]Faculté de pharmacie, Université de Montréal, Montréal

[11-17151635211049235]Faculté de pharmacie, Université de Montréal, Montréal

[12-17151635211049235]Centre intégré de santé et de services sociaux de l’Estrie-CHUS, Sherbrooke; Québec

[13-17151635211049235]Faculté de pharmacie, Université de Montréal, Montréal

Author notes

[*]Contact line.guenette@ 123456pha.ulaval.ca .

Author information

Line Guénette https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9769-7550

Article

Publisher ID: 10.1177_17151635211049235

DOI: 10.1177/17151635211049235

PMC ID: 8756373

SO-VID: 53f20441-1009-41c7-8d41-f838dadadbf4

License:

This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) which permits any use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages ( https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).

History

Funding

Funded by: Cercle du Doyen de la Faculté de pharmacie de l’Université de Montréal, ;

Funded by: Réseau Québécois de Recherche sur les Médicaments, FundRef https://doi.org/10.13039/100012779;

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Pharmacists practising in family medicine groups: An evaluation 2 years after experiencing a virtual community of practice

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Most cited references 17

Evolution of Wenger's concept of community of practice

How Health Care Professionals Use Social Media to Create Virtual Communities: An Integrative Review

The challenge of integrating community pharmacists into the primary health care team: a case study of local pharmaceutical services (LPS) pilots and interprofessional collaboration.

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