'Open-ended questions' and 'show-and-tell' - A way to improve pharmacist counselling and patients' handling of their medicines

Pharmacists must ensure that patients know how to make the best use of their medication. An education programme was initiated in the southernmost part of Sweden during 1990 in order to improve the communication skills of pharmacy staff and the information given to customers. Customers with prescriptions for Turbuhaler(R) were asked to 'show-and-tell' how they used their inhalers, and the results were documented. In April 1992, 53% of patients handled their Turbuhaler(R) correctly. One year later a significantly higher proportion of the patients (67%) used their inhalers correctly. If patients are asked to 'show-and-tell' how they use their medication and how they interpret the information given, then errors in their handling of the medicines can be revealed. If advice on the proper use of drugs is given to individual patients, then mishandling is reduced. The study used an open design, so the conclusions drawn can only be tentative. However, the magnitude of the change observed suggests that the conclusions are valid.