General practitioners believe that the integration of pharmacists into general practice reduce their workload, improve prescribing safety and improve medicines optimisation, according to new research published by Pharmacy Research UK.

The research was conducted by Tahmina Rokib at the University of Sunderland. The study also found that pharmacist independent prescribers were perceived to have a wider scope of practice and a greater impact on workload pressures.

Negative professional attitudes and a lack of confidence in pharmacists’ clinical aptitude were thought to be potential barriers to the integration of pharmacists in this setting. However, it is thought that this can be overcome by colocation and teamwork, as well as further pharmacist training.