Training Australian pharmacists for participation in a collaborative, home-based post-discharge warfarin management service

Objective To describe the development, implementation and outcomes of an anticoagulation education program for pharmacists participating in a community-based post-discharge warfarin management service. Setting Australian community pharmacy practice. Method Three education modules were developed in collaboration with medical experts and delivered electronically and via hands-on training sessions to pharmacists in three Australian states. Educational outcomes were assessed via a short answer assignment and evaluation of their warfarin dosing recommendations for five hypothetical scenarios. Consumer and pharmacist perceptions of the adequacy of the training were surveyed using a structured postal questionnaire. Main outcome measure Pharmacists’ score in the short answer assignment and evaluation of their responses to the hypothetical warfarin dosing scenarios. Results Sixty-two pharmacists successfully completed the training program with a mean score for the short answer assignment of 14.3 out of 15 (95.3%; 95% CI 13.8–14.7). The pharmacists’ warfarin management recommendations were very similar to those of two experienced medical specialists. Pharmacists and consumers expressed confidence in the adequacy of the training program. Conclusion This education program successfully up-skilled a cohort of pharmacists for involvement in a post-discharge warfarin management service. These findings support formalisation and further development of the program to facilitate widespread implementation of home-based post-discharge warfarin care.