Study design

A descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted among patients and pharmacists in three public hospitals in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from June 2017 to September 2017. Ethics approval was obtained from the research ethics committee of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM; Ref No: PPI/111/8/JEP-2017-354) and the Medical Research and Ethics Committee, Ministry of Health Malaysia (Ref No: NMRR-17-1471-36916 [IIR]).

Data collection was conducted in MTACs located in the consultation rooms within the outpatient department of the hospitals. Both pharmacists and patients were recruited using convenience sampling. In this study, patients who participated in MTAC services offered by the hospitals, specifically for cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, and hematological diseases, were included. Patients waiting outside the consultation rooms were approached and given an explanation of the study. Patients aged 18 years and older, who could speak or read either Malay or English language, and who had been diagnosed with chronic disease were recruited for this study. Patients who had never participated in any MTAC consultations with pharmacists were excluded. Written informed consent was obtained before participants were presented with a set of questionnaires to be completed, with assistance provided to those who requested.

In addition to patients, pharmacists were also recruited in this study. Qualified and registered pharmacists who were currently providing MTAC consultation services in the study hospitals were recruited and given a set of questionnaires to be completed.