• Yrsa Ivarsdottir, Jon Steinar Jonsson, Kristjan Linnet, and Anna Bryndis Blondal.
• Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Iceland.
• Laeknabladid. 2021 Nov 1; 107 (11): 522-527.

IntroductionThis study aimed to analyse several factors that influence the decision-making of primary care physicians in Iceland in their choice of drug therapy for their patients. Also, to find which factors can act as a hindrance in making the best choices. Finally, to analyse which elements could be most important in facilitating decisions.Material And MethodsA questionnaire was sent by e-mail to physicians working in primary care in Iceland. The questionnaire comprised closed questions, open text boxes, and ranking questions. The data was processed and analysed using Microsoft Excel.ResultsThe total number of primary care physicians who responded to the questionnaire was 93, a response rate of 40.7% of all the primary care physicians. The results reveal that physicians working in primary care consider clinical guidelines, the Icelandic National Formulary, and personal experience to be the most important factors when choosing a medication. Primary care physicians strongly agree that the lack of drug interaction software connected to medical records is a shortcoming. The most important factors that need improvement to facilitate primary care physicians' decision-making are drug formularies and interaction software.ConclusionThe results suggest some factors that support physicians in primary care in making decisions when choosing drug therapy, such as a drug formulary, drug interaction software, information about patients' drug therapy, variable length in face-to-face consultations, evidence based information on new drugs, and counselling provided by clinical pharmacists.

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