Telepharmacy during COVID-19: A Scoping Review

The objective of this scoping review is to summarize the implementation of telepharmacy during the surge of COVID-19. This review will focus on answering four questions: During the COVID-19 pandemic, (1) what were the various telepharmacy initiatives implemented? (2) what were the challenges faced w...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Pharmacy 2021-11, Vol.9 (4), p.183
Main Authors: Unni, Elizabeth J., Patel, Kanchita, Beazer, Isaac Rex, Hung, Man
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
challenges
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
Drug stores
implementation
Pharmacists
Review
scoping review
strategies
Telemedicine
telepharmacy
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Summary:The objective of this scoping review is to summarize the implementation of telepharmacy during the surge of COVID-19. This review will focus on answering four questions: During the COVID-19 pandemic, (1) what were the various telepharmacy initiatives implemented? (2) what were the challenges faced when implementing telehealth initiatives? (3) what were the strategies used by pharmacies to overcome the challenges, and (4) what were some of the innovative methods used by pharmacies to implement telepharmacy? A literature search was conducted to include publications post-March 2020 about telepharmacy implementation via PubMed Central database and Google searches. All articles were examined for inclusion or exclusion based on pre-determined criteria. A total of 33 articles were reviewed. The most commonly observed telepharmacy initiatives were virtual consultations, home delivery of medicines and patient education. Limited access to technology and lack of digital access and literacy were major barriers in the implementation of telepharmacy. New protocols were developed by healthcare systems and regulations were relaxed by countries to accommodate telepharmacy. Pharmacies that successfully implemented telepharmacy overcame these challenges through patient and pharmacist education. The review also revealed the steps that can be taken by pharmacy organizations, payers and entrepreneurs in leveraging the convenience of telepharmacy.
ISSN:2226-4787
2226-4787
DOI:10.3390/pharmacy9040183