Validation of the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) Medication Counselling Behaviour Guidelines

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess construct validity and internal consistency of the United States Pharmacopeia (USP)Medication Counselling Behaviour Guidelines.Thirty-six pharmacists from Maryland and Washington, DC, were recruited to evaluate six selected videotaped vignettes (n= 216)  by  using  the  35-item  Medication  Counselling  Behaviour  Guidelines  comprising  four  original subscales.  The construct  validity  and  internal  consistency  of  the  Guidelines were  evaluated  using  factor  analysis  (principal  component analysis) and  Cronbach’s  alpha.  Statistical  analysis  indicated  good  construct  validity  and internal  consistency  of  the Guidelines. Cronbach’s alpha for the whole original scale was 0.91 and for the four original subscales: Introduction 0.70,Content 0.86, Process 0.86 and Conclusion 0.80, respectively. Further analysis of the scale using factor analysis yielded four strong components that were interpreted as: needs assessment, precautions and warnings, management of the treatment and communication  based  on  their  content.  This  4-component  solution  showed  also high  internal  consistency.  The  USP Medication Counselling Behaviour Guidelines are a valid and reliable tool for evaluating patient counselling practices.