4CPS-053 Pharmacists’ and physicians’ views on the role of pharmacists in palliative care and deprescribing: a cross-sectional survey

<h3>Background and Importance</h3> The global demand for palliative care is growing but only 14% receive adequate care.¹ Complex medication regimens lead to polypharmacy, potentially jeopardising patient safety. Pharmacists may enhance safety through interventions such as deprescribing. Data on pharmacists’ involvement in deprescribing in palliative care remains limited. <h3>Aim and Objectives</h3> To explore the attitudes and views of physicians, hospital pharmacists and community pharmacists towards the role of pharmacists in palliative care, focusing on deprescribing at the end of life. <h3>Material and Methods</h3> A literature informed questionnaire, was piloted, tested for face and content validity, including sections on demographics, educational background, attitudes towards and suggestions for multidisciplinary collaboration and knowledge of deprescribing practices all in the context of palliative care. Answer options included 5-point Likert scale responses, open- and closed-ended questions. Following necessary ethical approval, distribution was through national palliative care and pharmacy networks. <h3>Results</h3> A total of 3527 healthcare professionals were targeted through these associations. No official data exists on how many of these engage in palliative care routinely, so response rate is unknown. Of 110 responses, 53 indicated routine contact with palliative patients and were included [physicians (Ph) n=19; pharmacists (P) n=34, 51% hospital (HP), 49% community pharmacy (CP)]. Further education in palliative care varied by occupation [(Ph) n=16, 84%; (P) n=6, 18%], only 34% indicating a pharmacist was on the palliative care team. Strong agreement existed on the importance of pharmacists’ roles in addressing ‘polypharmacy’ (Ph: 74%, HP: 94%, CP: 88%) and minimising ‘Risk of potential drug-drug interactions’ (Ph: 84%; HP: 89%; CP: 88%). Ph (OR 2.573; 95% CI) and HPs (OR 1.571; 95% CI) regularly used deprescribing resources. 71% of CPs did not engage in deprescribing activities. Ph relied more on clinical experience (n=10;77%) and literature (n=11;85%), whereas HP favoured explicit deprescribing tools. <h3>Conclusion and Relevance</h3> The study reveals an underrepresentation of pharmacists in palliative care. Addressing gaps in education and encouraging engagement in deprescribing activities, particularly in community pharmacy, are likely to enhance patient safety. <h3>References and/or Acknowledgements</h3> World Health Organisation. <i>WHO Fact sheet Palliative care</i> [homepage on the internet]. 2020 [cited 2024 February 27]. Available from: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/palliative care <h3>Conflict of Interest</h3> No conflict of interest