Pharmacists' experience of conflict in community practice

BackgroundInterpersonal conflict may be characterized as intellectual disagreement with emotional entanglement. While interpersonal conflict has been studied and described in different health care settings, there is little research that focuses on community pharmacists and the ways in which they experience conflict in professional practice.ObjectiveTo describe and characterize the experience of interpersonal conflict within community pharmacy practice.MethodsA self-reporting narrative log was developed in which actively recruited pharmacists reported and reflected upon their day-to-day experiences of interpersonal conflict in professional practice. Focus groups of pharmacists were convened following data analysis to provide context and confirmation of identified themes. Based on this analysis, an explanatory model for interpersonal conflict in community pharmacy practice was generated. Participants were actively recruited from community pharmacy settings in the Toronto (Canada) area. A total of 41 community pharmacists participated.ResultsInterpersonal conflict in pharmacy practice is ubiquitous and results from diverse triggers. A conflict stance model was developed, based on the worldview and the communication style of the individual pharmacist.ConclusionsSpecific conflict stances identified were: imposing, thwarting, settling, and avoiding. Further testing and refinement of this model is required.