The emergency contraception collaborative prescribing experience in Washington State.

OBJECTIVE

To describe how prescribers and pharmacists view the Emergency Contraceptive Pills (ECP) program, and to evaluate pharmacists' performance through the use of a consumer survey.

DESIGN

Self-administered provider satisfaction surveys were mailed 6 months after the program's inception. Consumer satisfaction surveys were distributed at the point of ECP service for return by mail.

SETTING

The program encouraged pharmacists and prescribers in western Washington to enter into collaborative prescribing agreements, increasing consumers' access to ECP.

PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS

Pharmacists who had attended ECP training sessions, prescribers who had authorized pharmacists to prescribe ECP, and women who had been prescribed ECP by pharmacists.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Providers' reasons for participating, attitudes toward the ECP program, and experiences with ECP as a result of the program; feedback from women receiving ECP from pharmacists.

RESULTS

309 pharmacist surveys and 55 prescriber surveys were sent, of which 159 (51%) and 27 (49%), respectively, were returned. Meeting patient needs and having a professional responsibility to participate were commonly reported reasons for ECP program involvement. Both pharmacists and prescribers (92%) reported being "satisfied" or "very satisfied" with their prescribing agreements. On the 470 consumer surveys returned out of 7,000 distributed (6.5%), pharmacists were rated highly satisfactory for their interactions with patients and the quality of information about ECP use given, but less satisfactory for information about adverse effects, recognition and follow-up of ECP failure, and regular contraceptive methods.

CONCLUSION

All participants expressed satisfaction with the ECP program. This example should support the initiation of similar programs in other states.