Drawing on healthcare professionals' ethnicity: lessons learned from a Danish community pharmacy intervention for ethnic minorities

TY - JOUR

T1 - Drawing on healthcare professionals' ethnicity

T2 - lessons learned from a Danish community pharmacy intervention for ethnic minorities

AU - Mygind, Anna

AU - Nørgaard, Lotte Stig

AU - Traulsen, Janine M.

AU - El-Souri, Mira

AU - Kristiansen, Maria

PY - 2017/5/1

Y1 - 2017/5/1

N2 - Aims: To present and discuss implementation experiences regarding the involvement of community pharmacists with ethnic minority backgrounds in a medication review intervention for ethnic minority poly-pharmacy patients in Denmark. Methods: Data sources include 1) reflection notes from an introductory seminar with pharmacists and the cross-disciplinary research team and 2) five individual interviews and one focus group interview with pharmacists. Data were thematically coded and synthesised to identify underlying rationales and challenges encountered when involving professionals with ethnic minority backgrounds in interventions for ethnic minorities. Results: Informants perceived the need for interventions targeted at ethnic minority poly-pharmacy patients, and highlighted the potential of involving professionals with diverse ethnic backgrounds in such interventions. However, implementation created challenges, because the professional identity of the pharmacists reduced their options for serving as peers with the same ethnic background. Furthermore, issues related to organisational difficulties and overcoming language barriers in the intervention impacted on the potential of involving professionals with ethnic minority backgrounds. Conclusions: Involving healthcare professionals with ethnic minority backgrounds in encounters with ethnic minorities holds potential for the adaptation of services to ethnically diverse populations, thus improving access to and quality of care. However, it is important to ensure sufficient personal and organisational support and to acknowledge the delicate balance between simultaneously serving as a peer and as a professional.

AB - Aims: To present and discuss implementation experiences regarding the involvement of community pharmacists with ethnic minority backgrounds in a medication review intervention for ethnic minority poly-pharmacy patients in Denmark. Methods: Data sources include 1) reflection notes from an introductory seminar with pharmacists and the cross-disciplinary research team and 2) five individual interviews and one focus group interview with pharmacists. Data were thematically coded and synthesised to identify underlying rationales and challenges encountered when involving professionals with ethnic minority backgrounds in interventions for ethnic minorities. Results: Informants perceived the need for interventions targeted at ethnic minority poly-pharmacy patients, and highlighted the potential of involving professionals with diverse ethnic backgrounds in such interventions. However, implementation created challenges, because the professional identity of the pharmacists reduced their options for serving as peers with the same ethnic background. Furthermore, issues related to organisational difficulties and overcoming language barriers in the intervention impacted on the potential of involving professionals with ethnic minority backgrounds. Conclusions: Involving healthcare professionals with ethnic minority backgrounds in encounters with ethnic minorities holds potential for the adaptation of services to ethnically diverse populations, thus improving access to and quality of care. However, it is important to ensure sufficient personal and organisational support and to acknowledge the delicate balance between simultaneously serving as a peer and as a professional.

U2 - 10.1177/1403494816683454

DO - 10.1177/1403494816683454

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 28019141

SN - 1403-4948

VL - 45

SP - 238

EP - 243

JO - Scandinavian Journal of Public Health

JF - Scandinavian Journal of Public Health

IS - 3

ER -