Physician agreement regarding the expansion of pharmacist professional activities in the management of patients with asthma.

Background: Asthma control remains suboptimal in Canada. Expansion of pharmacist's professional activities offers the opportunity to improve the interdisciplinary management of patients with asthma.

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the level of agreement of physicians regarding the expansion of pharmacists' professional activities in the management of asthma patients.

Methods: We conducted a survey of randomly selected Quebec physicians in family medicine, paediatrics and emergency medicine. A 102-item questionnaire, including 10 questions regarding pharmacist's expanded professional activities, was sent using the Tailored Design Method. Questions were answered on a 6-point Likert-like scale (0 - strong disagreement to 5 - strong agreement).

Results: With a 56% response rate, 421 (250 family medicine, 115 paediatric and 56 emergency medicine) physicians participated; the median years of practice (25%, 75%) was 13 (5-21) years and 69% of respondents were women. Physicians were in favour of the expansion of pharmacist's professional activities with strong endorsement rates (rating of ≥4 on a maximum of 5) exceeding 60% for all but three activities: suggesting a written action plan to the physician (55%), adjusting the dose of prescribed asthma medication to achieve a therapeutic target (52%) and offering spirometry testing in pharmacies (45%). Emergency physicians, physicians with fewer years of practice, and those with a favourable perception of an interprofessional approach were associated with higher endorsement of these activities.

Conclusion: Physicians are favourable to the expansion of pharmacist activities in the management of patients with asthma. More complex activities were less frequently endorsed. The characteristics of strong intenders have been identified.