TABLE 2.
Baseline patient characteristics based on pharmacy use.
| Single pharmacy users (n = 195) | Multiple pharmacy users (n = 94) | Total (n = 289) | Absolute standardized effect size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pharmacy state | 0.277 | |||
| New South Wales | 133/195 (68.2%) | 75/94 (79.8%) | 208/289 (72.0%) | |
| Tasmania | 23/195 (11.8%) | 7/94 (7.4%) | 30/289 (10.4%) | |
| Western Australia | 39/195 (20.0%) | 12/94 (12.8%) | 51/289 (17.6%) | |
| Pharmacy remoteness a | 0.047 | |||
| Highly accessible | 127/195 (65.1%) | 59/94 (62.8%) | 186/289 (64.4%) | |
| Accessible | 49/195 (25.1%) | 25/94 (26.6%) | 74/289 (25.6%) | |
| Moderately accessible, remote, very remote | 19/195 (9.7%) | 10/94 (10.6%) | 29/289 (10.0%) | |
| Age (years) | 0.086 | |||
| 18–55 | 85/195 (43.6%) | 45/94 (47.9%) | 130/289 (45.0%) | |
| >55 | 110/195 (56.4%) | 49/94 (52.1%) | 159/289 (55.0%) | |
| Female | 141/195 (72.3%) | 68/94 (72.3%) | 209/289 (72.3%) | 0.001 |
| Work Status | 0.414 | |||
| Full-time employed | 41/195 (21.0%) | 22/94 (23.4%) | 63/289 (21.8%) | |
| Home duties | 15/195 (7.7%) | 11/94 (11.7%) | 26/289 (9.0%) | |
| Part time or casually employed | 48/195 (24.6%) | 13/94 (13.8%) | 61/289 (21.1%) | |
| Retired/pensioner | 62/195 (31.8%) | 41/94 (43.6%) | 103/289 (35.6%) | |
| Other | 29/195 (14.9%) | 7/94 (7.4%) | 36/289 (12.5%) | |
| Education | 0.190 | |||
| High school education or below | 101/195 (51.8%) | 50/94 (53.2%) | 151/289 (52.2%) | |
| Tertiary non-university | 54/195 (27.7%) | 20/94 (21.3%) | 74/289 (25.6%) | |
| University or higher | 40/195 (20.5%) | 24/94 (25.5%) | 64/289 (22.1%) | |
| Self-reported age of asthma onset (years) | 0.403 | |||
| 0–5 | 34/195 (17.4%) | 32/94 (34.0%) | 66/289 (22.8%) | |
| 6–15 | 42/195 (21.5%) | 17/94 (18.1%) | 59/289 (20.4%) | |
| 16–34 | 55/195 (28.2%) | 20/94 (21.3%) | 75/289 (26.0%) | |
| 35–55 | 36/195 (18.5%) | 15/94 (16.0%) | 51/289 (17.6%) | |
| >55 | 28/195 (14.4%) | 10/94 (10.6%) | 38/289 (13.1%) | |
| Self-reported lung function test | 0.173 | |||
| <12 months ago | 58/195 (29.7%) | 26/94 (27.7%) | 84/289 (29.1%) | |
| ≥12 months ago | 81/195 (41.5%) | 47/94 (50.0%) | 128/289 (44.3%) | |
| Never | 56/195 (28.7%) | 21/94 (22.3%) | 77/289 (26.6%) | |
| Smoker | 30/195 (15.4%) | 12/94 (12.8%) | 42/289 (14.5%) | 0.075 |
| Self-reported allergic rhinitis | 141/195 (72.3%) | 73/94 (77.7%) | 214/289 (74.0%) | 0.124 |
| Emergency Department presentation in the last 12 months (Yes) | 48/195 (24.6%) | 28/94 (29.8%) | 76/289 (26.3%) | 0.116 |
| Hospital admission in the last 12 months (Yes) | 26/195 (13.3%) | 22/94 (23.4%) | 48/289 (16.6%) | 0.262 |
| ACQ score b Median (Q1; Q3) | 2.2 (1.7; 3.0) | 2.2 (1.8; 3.0) | 2.2 (1.7; 3.0) | 0.075 |
| IAQLQ score c Median (Q1; Q3) | 3.1 (1.8; 4.8) | 3.1 (2.0; 5.0) | 3.1 (1.8; 4.9) | 0.107 |
| RCAT score d Median (Q1; Q3) | 20.0 (16.0; 25.0) | 21.0 (17.0; 24.0) | 20.0 (16.0; 25.0) | 0.098 |
Note: Absolute standardized differences were used to compare subgroups. Values range from 0 to 1, with a higher number indicating a larger difference between the two subgroups.
Participating pharmacies were identified as either “highly accessible” (PhARIA Category 1), “accessible” (PhARIA Categories 2 and 3) or “moderately accessible, remote or very remote” (PhARIA Categories 4, 5 and 6) National Rural Health Alliance, 2011; The University of Adelaide, 2019a; The University of Adelaide, 2019b
Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ) score lies between 0 (totally controlled) and 6 (extremely poorly controlled). A score of 1.5 or greater is considered an indication of poorly controlled asthma Juniper et al., 2006.
Impact of Asthma on Quality of Life Questionnaire (IAQLQ) scores lie between 0 and 10. Higher scores represent a greater impact of asthma on quality of life Marks et al., 1992.
Rhinitis Control Assessment Test (RCAT) scores lie between 6 and 30. The lower the score, the more severe the allergic rhinitis; the higher the score, the less severe the allergic rhinitis. Patients scoring ≤21 are considered clinically “symptom uncontrolled”; those scoring >21 are considered “symptom controlled“ Meltzer et al., 2013.