Table 2 Unifying themes and contributing sub-themes from pharmacist papers

Pharmacists’ concerns regarding patient understanding of generic medicines and substitution, patient safety and compliance with treatments

a. Patient confusion

[14, 51–53, 56, 58]

b. Concerns regarding interchangeability

[13, 14, 51, 53, 54, 56, 58]

c. Problems with patient compliance

[13, 51, 53, 56]

Pharmacists’ understanding of generic medicines and substitution, and pharmacists’ confidence in quality, efficacy and safety of generic medicines

a. Level of confidence in knowledge

[15, 53, 55, 56, 58]

b. Hospital-based pharmacists versus community pharmacists

[13]

c. Need to contact prescriber

[51]

d. Belief that the patient prefers physician opinion

[52, 53, 58]

e. Requirement for adverse event reporting

[54, 56]

Practical aspects of pharmacists’ practice as affected by generic medicines and substitution

a. Financial incentives by pharmaceutical industry

[13, 15, 52, 56–58]

b. Increased pharmacist workload

[13, 51, 53, 54, 56, 58]

c. Adverse effect on stocking levels

[14, 51, 53]

d. Influence of industry representatives

[15, 52, 58]

Pharmacists’ suggestions to improve generic medicine use and education of stakeholders

a. General education needed

[14, 15, 52–58]

b. Patients should have a role in medication decision

[51, 53]

c. Need for change in prescribing patterns

[52, 53, 57, 58]