Professional Culture and Personality Traits of Hospital Pharmacists across Canada: A Fundamental First Step in Developing Effective Knowledge Translation Strategies.

backgroundEvidence for the value of pharmacists' interventions in the care of patients is strong and continues to grow, but the rate at which these new practice opportunities are being integrated into daily practice has not kept pace. The knowledge translation literature suggests that before effective change strategies can be implemented, a better understanding of the current environment must be obtained. Two important factors within the practice environment are the professional culture and personality traits of group members.

objectiveTo gain insight, at a national level, into the culture of hospital pharmacy, using the Organizational Culture Profile, and into hospital pharmacists' personality traits, using the Big Five Inventory.

methodsA cross-sectional survey of hospital pharmacists from across Canada was conducted intermittently over the period August 2012 to September 2013. The online survey contained questions about demographic characteristics and practice setting, as well as questions from the Organizational Culture Profile and Big Five Inventory. The survey link was distributed directly to hospital pharmacists or made available through provincial monthly newsletters. All data were analyzed descriptively and inferentially.

resultsIn total, 401 surveys were returned. Descriptive analyses from the Organizational Culture Profile revealed that most respondents perceived value in the factors of supportiveness, competitiveness, and stability. Descriptive analyses from the Big Five Inventory revealed that respondents may have been more likely to exhibit behaviours in line with the trait of conscientiousness. Several significant subgroup differences were noted in relation to levels of education, regions of practice within Canada, years in practice, and proportion of time spent conducting clinical duties.

conclusionsThe results from this survey provide preliminary insight into the professional culture and personality traits of Canadian hospital pharmacists. It will be important to explore these findings in more depth to maximize the success of any future practice change initiatives.