“BPHD INTERVIEW WITH GABRIELE OVERWIENING, PRESIDENT OF AKWL AND ABDA (FEDERAL UNION OF GERMAN ASSOCIATIONS OF PHARMACISTS) AMBASSADOR: ROMAN PRATZKA BPHD, GERMANY The ABDA - Federal Union of German Associations of Pharmacists is the umbrella organisation of more than 60,000 (mostly community) pharmacists in Germany. The aim of the Berlin-based association is to join together and bring forward the common interests of this healthcare profession. AKWL = chamber of pharmacists in Westphalia-Lippe Roman Pratzka: Ms. Overwiening, you are in charge of three pharmacies yourself. What are the everyday challenges that pharmacists face there? What challenges do you experience at work, e.g., in contact with patients? Gabriele Overwiening: First of all, the patients are very grateful that we are there and that we are their contact persons. This is something that I have always experienced, but which is now taking on incredible proportions during the pandemic. [...] Now we are receiving tremendous gratitude with regard to the rapid antigen tests. [...] And now with digital covid vaccination certificates, I feel like we're giving people back a bit of their freedom. [...] What is exhausting is the occasional lack of appreciation of our pharmaceutical services by opinion leaders and politicians, who take our services for granted. Just like electricity from an electrical outlet. It will only be acknowledged once it is no longer available. Roman Pratzka: Keyword digitalization: Many pharmacies still work with fax machines and are poorly equipped digitally. To what extent is this lack of digitalization and outdated communication perhaps also a problem in pharmacies? Gabriele Overwiening: I can say with absolute certainty that only a small proportion of pharmacies have not really been digitalized well. The vast majority of pharmacies have a high digital affinity. The fact that we often still use fax machines is also due to other market players in the healthcare system. Roman Pratzka: Keyword: interprofessional cooperation in general between physicians and pharmacists. In some cases, I see communication difficulties in the pharmacy again and again, when there is a nonplausible prescription or when certain medications are not in stock. In such cases, the doctor has to be contacted. Oftentimes, they are not available, have little understanding and little time for pharmacists. On the other hand, patients also have little patience when they have to wait at the counter for their medication. Do you also see these problems in the professional relationship between doctors and pharmacists, or is this less of a hurdle? Gabriele Overwiening: At the moment, interprofessionalism is highly dependent on the personal relationship between local physicians and pharmacists. There are great examples where it works brilliantly, where they complement each other very well, and then there are catastrophic examples. [...] For both professions, it will be crucial that we embark on the path to a digital future together. It is important that we as health care professionals always remember: a health care system has only one objective and that is the well-being of the patients. [...] That is why I will attach great importance to advancing interprofessionalism. What counts is the health of the patients.
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