Department of Pharmacy Practice and Clinical Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, P.O. Box LG 43, University of Ghana, Legon, Ghana.
Department of Physician Assistantship Studies, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Central University, Accra, Ghana.
Res Social Adm Pharm. 2021 Jan;17(1):2023-2026. doi: 10.1016/j.sapharm.2020.04.007. Epub 2020 Apr 15.
The current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is placing a huge strain on health systems worldwide. Suggested solutions like social distancing and lockdowns in some areas to help contain the spread of the virus may affect special patient populations like those with chronic illnesses who are unable to access healthcare facilities for their routine care and medicines management. Retail pharmacy outlets are the likely facilities for easy access by these patients. The contribution of community pharmacists in these facilities to manage chronic conditions and promote medication adherence during this COVID-19 pandemic will be essential in easing the burden on already strained health systems. This paper highlights the pharmaceutical care practices of community pharmacists for patients with chronic diseases during this pandemic. This would provide support for the call by the WHO to maintain essential services during the pandemic, in order to prevent non-COVID disease burden on healthcare systems particularly in low-and middle-income countries.
当前的 2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）大流行正在给全球卫生系统带来巨大压力。一些地区建议采取社交距离和封锁等措施来帮助控制病毒的传播，这可能会影响到一些特殊的患者群体，如患有慢性病的患者，他们无法前往医疗机构进行常规护理和药物管理。零售药店可能是这些患者容易获得医疗服务的地方。在 COVID-19 大流行期间，这些设施中的社区药剂师在管理慢性病和促进药物依从性方面的贡献对于减轻已经紧张的卫生系统的负担至关重要。本文重点介绍了在大流行期间社区药剂师为慢性病患者提供的药物治疗服务。这将为世界卫生组织（WHO）在大流行期间维持基本服务的呼吁提供支持，以防止非 COVID 疾病对医疗系统的负担，特别是在中低收入国家。
