The Role of Participatory Action Research on Clinicians’ Attitudes toward Medication Management

Background: Medication management is a cyclic and multidisciplinary approach to enhance safe medication therapy. This paper explores clinician attitude toward medication management which is both open to influence and strongly linked to successful changes in mediation behavior.Purpose: To investigate effects of engaging in participatory action research to improve emergency medicine clinicians’ attitudes toward implementing effective medication management.Methodology: Data are drawn from two-cycle participatory action research. Within the study, a total of 85 clinicians including nurses and physicians from emergency department of one university affiliated hospital participated as participants. Eight managers and clinicians participated as representatives. Initially, a situation analysis on the current medication management and clinician views regarding medication management was conducted using three focus groups. Evaluation and reflection data were obtained through qualitative interviews. All qualitative data were analyzed using content analysis. Results: Clinicians initially expressed negative attitudes toward existing and new plans for medication management, in that they were critical of current medication-related policy and procedures, as well as wary of the potential relevance and utility of potential changes to medication management. Through the action research, improvement actions were implemented including interprofessional courses, pharmacist-led interventions, and the development of new guidelines regarding medication management. Participants and their representatives were engaged in all participatory action research stages. Extracted results from evaluation and reflection stages revealed that by engaging in the action research and practice new interventions, clinicians’ attitude toward medication management was improved. Conclusion: The results support the impact of participatory action research on enhanced clinicians’ positive attitudes through involvement in planning and implementing medication management actions.