Recent policy changes have introduced mandatory price transparency measures in community pharmacies, requiring clearer communication of medicine costs and fees for dispensing and services. While these changes aim to support patient autonomy and informed decision-making, the broader implications for pharmacy practice and professional identity remain unclear. Community pharmacists work at the intersection of healthcare and retail, and an increased emphasis on pricing may influence how they view their role, how patients perceive them, and their task prioritisation.
This project will explore community pharmacists’ views and experiences regarding how these price transparency measures have been implemented, their effect on their professional identity and practices, and their impact on patient communication and care. It will also examine whether perspectives differ between pharmacists based on their characteristics.
The project will have two stages. First, semi-structured interviews will be conducted with approximately 12 community pharmacists with vary characteristics based on their pharmacy type and location, role, and years of experience. Interviews will include the exploration of pharmacists’ personal experiences of discussing costs with patients, perceived effects on work practices, and reflections on their evolving identity in the context of these transparency measures. The interview transcripts will undergo rapid qualitative analysis to identify and generate themes to reflect the pharmacists’ views.
The interview data will be used to optimise an online survey, which will be distributed to pharmacists via email to gather their attitudes, perceived challenges, and perceived benefits associated with price transparency measures. Descriptive and inferential statistics will be performed to analyse the survey data.
The expected outcome of this mixed-methods research project is to acquire a clearer understanding of how transparency measures shape pharmacists’ professional identity and the boundary between their clinical care and retail services. These findings will support future policy refinement, professional guidance, and educational initiatives relating to pharmacists’ role development.