Teperikidis, E.; Vitsos, A.; Kokkini, A.; Fesatidou, M.; Apostolou, S.; Sidiropoulou, A.; Evgenidis, D.; Ztriva, E.; Myrou, A.; Kaiafa, G.; Karlafti, E.; Daios, S.; Tegos, T.; Savopoulos, C. A Feasibility Study of the RESP-8 Tool: Enhancing Pharmacist-Led Triage for Upper Respiratory Tract Infections. Preprints2024, 2024061135. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202406.1135.v1
APA Style
Teperikidis, E., Vitsos, A., Kokkini, A., Fesatidou, M., Apostolou, S., Sidiropoulou, A., Evgenidis, D., Ztriva, E., Myrou, A., Kaiafa, G., Karlafti, E., Daios, S., Tegos, T., & Savopoulos, C. (2024). A Feasibility Study of the RESP-8 Tool: Enhancing Pharmacist-Led Triage for Upper Respiratory Tract Infections. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202406.1135.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Teperikidis, E., Thomas Tegos and Christos Savopoulos. 2024 "A Feasibility Study of the RESP-8 Tool: Enhancing Pharmacist-Led Triage for Upper Respiratory Tract Infections" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202406.1135.v1
Abstract
Background: Upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) are a major public health concern due to their high incidence and potential for complications. Pharmacists often serve as the first point of contact for patients with URTIs. This study aims to develop and evaluate the RESP-8 tool to assist pharmacists in determining the need for medical evaluation. Methods: This prospective interventional cohort study was conducted over six months (October 2023 to March 2024) in community pharmacies. Participants included adults aged 18 years and older presenting with URTI symptoms. Pharmacists used the RESP-8 tool, which comprises eight criteria to assess the need for medical referral. Data on medical history, symptom duration, and progression were recorded. The primary outcome was the feasibility of implementing the RESP-8 tool. Secondary outcomes included the accuracy of the tool, the percentage of patients recommended for medical evaluation, and compliance with these recommendations. Results: A total of 64 participants were included, with an average age of 55.7 years. Pharmacists recommended medical evaluation for 75% (48/64) of patients using the RESP-8 tool. Among these, 70.83% (34/48) complied with the recommendation. The tool demonstrated high accuracy in identifying patients needing further medical evaluation, with only two noted errors. All compliant patients received appropriate treatment without complications. The tool was easy to implement, taking less than 5 minutes per patient. Discussion: The RESP-8 tool effectively guided pharmacists in recommending medical evaluations for URTI patients. The high compliance rate indicates patient trust in pharmacists' guidance. While the study's small sample size limits generalizability, the results are promising. Future studies with larger populations are necessary to validate these findings and further refine the tool. Conclusion: The RESP-8 tool shows potential in enhancing pharmacists' ability to make informed decisions about medical referrals for URTIs, ultimately improving patient outcomes and optimizing healthcare resource management.
Keywords
Upper respiratory tract infections, URTI, pharmacists, RESP-8 tool, medical evaluation, public health.
Subject
Public Health and Healthcare, Public Health and Health Services
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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