Status of Community Pharmacy Functions and Regional Medical Collaboration System Initiatives in Japan

Abstract

With the increase in life expectancy in Japan, the proportion of older adults requiring medical assistance continues to increase. Hence, the Japanese government proposed the establishment of a community-based integrated care system, aimed at ensuring housing, medical care, long-term care, prevention, and lifestyle support in a comprehensive manner by 2025. To achieve this paradigm shift, pharmacies must collaborate with their respective medical providers. Therefore, we conducted a questionnaire survey to investigate the characteristics of pharmacies with successful regional medical collaborations. An original questionnaire was sent to 1200 randomly sampled pharmacies in Tokyo, of which 350 (29.2%) responded. These were evaluated based on the implementation of regional medical collaboration. The adequacy of a regional medical collaboration system was positively related to the operational structure (e.g., staffing and information sharing within the pharmacy) and the number of hospitals (including clinics) issuing prescriptions. In addition, insufficient personnel and a lack of interaction with other medical providers were identified as major obstacles to implementing regional collaboration. Notably, the geographic distance from medical providers and the type of division of labor with medical providers were not associated with the adequacy of engagement in a regional medical collaboration system. The results of this study suggest that it may be possible to move closer to the realization of a community-based integrated care system through communication with other healthcare professionals and appropriate staffing regardless of the pharmacy’s business form.