标题：Communicating dosage instructions across cultural and linguistic barriers : pharmacist-patient interactions in a South African antiretroviral clinic
出版社：Department of General Linguistics, University of Stellenbosch
摘要：Over the past decade, HIV/AIDS has spread with astounding rapidity. The global introduction of antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) has decreased mortality rates and brought hope to many. However, the nature of ARV treatment is such that the patient must remain on it for the duration of life and research has shown that adherence levels of 80-95% are required to ensure treatment success (Gross et al. 2001; Paterson et al. 2000). The advent of the HIV/AIDS epidemic has greatly increased the pharmacist's workload. Aside from dispensing drugs and monitoring for drug interactions and toxicities, pharmacists are also expected to provide counselling and advice that is tailored towards each patient's needs, as well as to ensure patient adherence to ARVs (Hardy 2005; Kansanaho 2006). However, pharmacists are rarely trained in communication skills (Salter et al. 2007). Communication has been identified as a huge potential barrier in health settings and there is evidence of interference from psychosocial and HIV/Aids-related factors, as well as cultural and linguistic barriers. The manner in which a message is communicated by a health professional and understood by a patient is vital, because poor communication or misunderstanding of instructions may lead to non-adherence or difficulties in taking medicines (Sleath et al. 1999). In an age of globalisation, patient caseloads are increasingly multilingual and multicultural and the pharmacist must play a specific role in ensuring that communication with patients is successful despite cultural and linguistic barriers.
Loading...
