Assessing the knowledge, practices and collaborative readiness of community pharmacists’ management of progressive joint disorders in South Africa

Abstract

Background: Progressive joint disorders (PJDs) are a leading cause of chronic pain and disability, requiring multidisciplinary management. Community pharmacists are well positioned to support patients through education, medication management and referrals, yet gaps in referral practices and interprofessional collaboration persist.
Aim: To assess South African community pharmacists’ referral practices in managing PJDs and their knowledge of other healthcare providers’ roles, with the goal of identifying opportunities to enhance collaboration and inform the development of referral guidelines.
Setting: Private community pharmacies across South Africa.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted using a structured online questionnaire distributed nationally. Data on demographics, familiarity with PJDs, management practices, referral behaviours and barriers to collaboration were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics.
Results: Of 373 participants, 84.5% were familiar with PJDs, most commonly gout, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Over 60% did not use formal guidelines for PJD management. There was no significant association between guideline use and familiarity with other providers’ roles (p = 0.96). Referrals were predominantly to medical doctors with limited engagement with other health professionals. Barriers included a lack of referral protocols and limited knowledge of other providers’ roles. Most pharmacists expressed a willingness to improve care through better collaboration and education.
Conclusion: Pharmacists play a pivotal role in PJD management and require better training, awareness and structured referral pathways to enhance multidisciplinary care and optimise patient outcomes.
Contribution: This study highlights the need for evidence-based referral guidelines and interprofessional education in pharmacy curricula to strengthen pharmacists’ role in multidisciplinary PJD care.