Assessing the behavioral health and social determinants of health training needs of Pennsylvania pharmacy personnel

Background: Over one-third of Americans live in areas without access to mental health resources. Pharmacy personnel are a trusted and accessible resource in the community, allowing them to be a point of contact for individuals with behavioral health (BH) or social determinants of health (SDOH) needs. However, pharmacy personnel may not have the training or the confidence to provide that support. 

Objective: The purpose of this study was to identify the BH/SDOH training gaps of Pennsylvania pharmacy personnel. 

Methods: An electronic needs survey was distributed to members of the Pennsylvania Pharmacists Association. Survey items elicited respondents' self-reported comfort in providing certain BH/SDOH services, self-reported access to related resources, and knowledge on true-false assessment questions. Demographic information (area of practice setting, type of community practice, job title, prior training) was selected a priori to determine if there were differences within the subcategories. Chi-squared tests were performed to determine statistical significance; α was set at 0.05. 

Results: A total of 140 respondents completed the survey, with 54% identifying as pharmacists and 52% practicing in a suburban setting. Forty-one percent of respondents reported feeling comfortable assessing an individual for risk of suicide or harm and 32% reported being able to refer patients to local homeless shelters. A minority of respondents answered all Mental Health First Aid-related assessment questions correctly (43%). A statistically significant higher percentage of pharmacists were comfortable providing information on BH compared to nonpharmacist personnel (64% vs. 41%, P = 0.01) but not for other services. There was no statistically significant difference in reported comfort by area of practice setting or by type of community practice. 

Conclusion: This study demonstrates that pharmacy personnel have some level of experience and comfort with providing BH/SDOH services, but gaps remain. We expect that with additional training, pharmacy personnel can become advocates to help care for patients with BH/SDOH needs.