The effects of free prescriptions on community pharmacy selection: A discrete choice experiment.
Res Social Adm Pharm
; 2024 Aug 24.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-39214717
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Little is known about preferences for community pharmacies, particularly the influence of prescription co-payments, and for New Zealand's priority populations, Maori and Pacific Peoples. Improving understanding of community pharmacy preferences will enable tailoring services to meet community needs.OBJECTIVES:
This study aims to investigate New Zealanders' preferences for community pharmacies when collecting prescriptions. Additionally, variations in preferences for community pharmacy attributes between different latent and demographic groups were examined.METHODS:
Focus group discussions with various community groups were thematically analyzed to develop six attributes location, wait time, customer service, prescription co-payments, parking availability, and nearby businesses. Participants were asked to complete an online survey involving 12 choice tasks, where they had to choose their preferred option of 3 unlabeled pharmacies along with demographic questions. A mixed multinomial logit model and latent classes analysis were used to assess and compare the participant preferences.RESULTS:
The sample of 553 participants, representative of the New Zealand population, resulted in 19,908 observations for analysis. The most attractive pharmacy attribute was its proximity, being within a 10-min travel distance from home or work. The importance of prescription co-payments is evident, with free prescriptions being the second most attractive attribute level and $15 NZD prescription co-payments being the least appealing. Different classes placed importance on different attributes, the largest of which prioritized prescription co-payments. Including demographic characteristics did not improve model accuracy nor predict class membership.CONCLUSIONS:
Under current policy, the most effective way for pharmacies to attract business is by offering free prescriptions. However, the trend of adopting lower-cost models may reduce the quality of care they deliver. Policy decision-makers must decide if they are comfortable with this potential impact.
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Banco de datos:
MEDLINE
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Res Social Adm Pharm
Asunto de la revista:
FARMACIA
Año:
2024
Tipo del documento:
Article