Honors Theses
Date of Award
2017
Document Type
Undergraduate Thesis
Department
Pharmacy Administration
First Advisor
Donna West-Strum
Relational Format
Dissertation/Thesis
Abstract
Objectives: The broad purpose of this study is to describe community pharmacists' perceptions of rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) in community pharmacies in Mississippi. The focused goal of this study is to determine the correlation between Everett M. Rogers' attributes of the diffusion of innovations (including relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, trialability, and observability) and the willingness of community pharmacists to offer RDTs in community pharmacies in Mississippi. Methods: This study was approved by the University of Mississippi IRB. A list of licensed pharmacists was obtained from the Mississippi Board of Pharmacy. An email with study details and a link to the Qualtrics® survey was sent to licensed pharmacists. The survey included a screening question (to ensure all participants had recent experience in a community pharmacy in Mississippi), demographic questions, practice-setting questions, several statements for each attribute of the diffusion of innovations, possible barriers to and benefits of offering RDTs, and asked participants to rate their willingness to offer RDTs. SPSS® was used for data analysis. Results: The Qualtrics® survey was sent to 3110 possible respondents. The actual response rate was 3.8%. Mean and median ratings were calculated for each of the attributes of the diffusion of innovations and for willingness to offer RDTs. A linear regression with the mean rating of each attribute of the diffusion of innovations as independent variables/predictors and the mean rating of willingness to offer RDTs as the dependent variable/outcome variable was performed. Relative advantage, complexity, and trialability were found to be statistically significant in influencing pharmacists' willingness to offer RDTs. Conclusion: The attributes of Rogers' diffusion of innovations that influence Mississippi pharmacists' willingness to offer RDTs in the community pharmacy include relative advantage, complexity, and trialability. As the perceived benefit increases, perceived complexity decreases, and degree to which an innovation may be experimented with on a limited basis increases, a Mississippi community pharmacist's willingness to offer RDTs increases. As RDTs are more widely implemented in community pharmacies, it will be important for pharmacists to see an advantage to offering RDTs, be prepared to understand RDTs, and be able to experiment with the implementation of RDTs.
Recommended Citation
Hoevelmann, Erin Ann, "Pharmacists' Perceptions of Rapid Diagnostic Testing in Community Pharmacies in Mississippi: A Diffusion of Innovations Approach" (2017). Honors Theses. 327.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis/327
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