“I felt empowered”: patient-reported experience with a pilot national community pharmacy-based urinary tract infection service

Mantzourani, Efi ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6313-1409, Evans, Andrew, Deslandes, Rhian ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2727-1797, Ahmed, Haroon ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0634-8548, Reeve, Nicola, Macdonald, Samuel and Cannings-John, Rebecca ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5235-6517 2025. “I felt empowered”: patient-reported experience with a pilot national community pharmacy-based urinary tract infection service. Antibiotics 14 (11) , 1086. 10.3390/antibiotics14111086

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Abstract

Background: In June 2024, urinary tract infections (UTIs) were added to the list of conditions that could be treated by community pharmacists providing the national Common Ailments Service in Wales. The aim of this study was to describe patient-reported experiences of UTI management by pharmacists. Methods: A positivist research paradigm was selected, with data collection through a survey. Results: In total, 309 surveys were received between 29 June 2024 and 14 July 2025. Patients rated their experience using a scale of 1 (very poor) to 10 (excellent), with a median score of 10 (IQR = 10 to 10, range 6 to 10). High satisfaction was independent of age and provision of antibiotics, with the same median and IQR and a similar range between the groups who received and did not receive antibiotics (7–10 and 6–10, respectively). Of the 309 respondents, 297 (96.1%) stated that the next time they had a UTI, they would return to the pharmacy instead of trying to see a GP, and 253 (81.9%) that they understood why antibiotics are not always recommended. Conclusions: Community pharmacists managed patient expectations, improved patient confidence in managing current symptoms and provided information on self-care strategies for preventing future infections, demonstrating their valuable role in health promotion and antimicrobial stewardship.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Schools > Medicine Schools > Pharmacy Research Institutes & Centres > Centre for Trials Research (CNTRR)
Publisher:	MDPI
ISSN:	2079-6382
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	3 November 2025
Date of Acceptance:	24 October 2025
Last Modified:	03 Nov 2025 14:00
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/182064

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