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ABSTRACT
Background: The scarcity of Pharmacists available to provide comprehensive pharmaceutical care in Nigeria has resulted in the incorporation of pharmacy technicians (PTs) as auxiliary staff within hospital settings. Despite some overlapping responsibilities between pharmacists and PTs, the effectiveness of their collaboration in hospitals has been a subject of debate. This study investigates the Hospital pharmacist perception of the value and knowledge of pharmacy technicians in two tertiary and secondary hospitals in Edo state. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive design was employed in this study, involving the distribution of structured questionnaires to 100 licensed practicing hospital pharmacists across two tertiary and two secondary hospitals in Edo State. Data were collected, and statistical analysis, including descriptive and inferential statistics, was conducted using SPSS version25.0 Results: one-hundred (100%) of hospital pharmacists participated in the study, however 9% of the questionnaires were incompletely filled comprising 48 (52.7%) females and 43 (47.3%) males. A majority of respondents (53.8%) held the B. Pharm. qualification, and approximately 80% were under 35 years of age with less than 10 years of professional practice experience. The data analysis revealed that a significant proportion of pharmacists (89%) acknowledged effective collaboration between pharmacists and PTs within their healthcare facilities. Additionally, over two-thirds of respondents (68%) believed that the knowledge acquired by PTs was sufficient for them to work alongside pharmacists Furthermore, the study found that a substantial majority (92%) of PTs received and worked with therapeutic advice and suggestions provided by pharmacists. Most respondents also indicated that PTs demonstrated a positive work attitude (mean = 3.53, SD = 0.94). Nevertheless, over 75% of pharmacists perceived PTs as insufficiently qualified to assume more prominent roles in the provision of pharmaceutical care (mean = 2.94, SD = 0.90). Conclusion: This study underscores the existence of a high level of collaboration between pharmacist and pharmacy technicians in the hospital. Pharmacist knowledge of the role of pharmacy technicians showed favourable perception in the area of qualifications and capabilities as the study highlights diverse roles that PT’s are perceived to play in pharmaceutical care delivery. Notably, this study also reveals that pharmacists in both secondary and tertiary hospitals share similar perceptions regarding the value and knowledge of PTs in Edo State. Keywords: Perception, Value, Knowledge, Hospital, Pharmacist, Pharmacy Technicians.
