Jamaican Community Pharmacists-Determined Barriers to Availability of Smoking Cessation Aids

Objectives: To determine the willingness of Jamaican pharmacists to stock and dispense smoking cessation aids and determine barriers to selling products. Design: A descriptive study that utilized pharmacist-completed surveys. The participants received a sectionalized survey and a structured question...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Aleena Langlay, Jeanine Abrons, Andrea Daly
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-06-01
Series:Pharmacy
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2226-4787/13/3/81
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Summary:Objectives: To determine the willingness of Jamaican pharmacists to stock and dispense smoking cessation aids and determine barriers to selling products. Design: A descriptive study that utilized pharmacist-completed surveys. The participants received a sectionalized survey and a structured questionnaire tool. Data collection took place over six weeks. Setting: Pharmacists practicing in pharmacies registered by the Pharmacy Council of Jamaica (PCJ) Participants: A total of fifty-seven registered community pharmacists. Results: Most pharmacies (87.7%) do not stock smoking cessation aids. The most identifiable products were nicotine patches/nicotine gum. Pharmacists’ barriers to selling were cost (42%), lack of knowledge of the process of obtaining cessation aids (27.3%), and low demand from patients/clients (22.7%). Most pharmacists (86%) were willing to stock cessation aids. Of the total product requests, 61.2% were lodged by persons 26–50 years old. The stocking of products was not independent of location (<i>p</i> < 0.005). Conclusion: The barriers to the availability of smoking cessation aids, once adequately addressed, could positively enhance the achievement of smoking cessation practices.
ISSN:2226-4787