{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T09:35:20Z","timestamp":1785404120129,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":40,"publisher":"AOSIS","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,23]],"date-time":"2026-02-23T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1771804800000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background:\u00a0Progressive joint disorders (PJDs) are a leading cause of chronic pain and disability, requiring multidisciplinary management. Community pharmacists are well positioned to support patients through education, medication management and referrals, yet gaps in referral practices and interprofessional collaboration persist.\nAim:\u00a0To assess South African community pharmacists\u2019 referral practices in managing PJDs and their knowledge of other healthcare providers\u2019 roles, with the goal of identifying opportunities to enhance collaboration and inform the development of referral guidelines.\nSetting:\u00a0Private community pharmacies across South Africa.\nMethods:\u00a0A cross-sectional survey was conducted using a structured online questionnaire distributed nationally. Data on demographics, familiarity with PJDs, management practices, referral behaviours and barriers to collaboration were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics.\nResults:\u00a0Of 373 participants, 84.5% were familiar with PJDs, most commonly gout, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Over 60% did not use formal guidelines for PJD management. There was no significant association between guideline use and familiarity with other providers\u2019 roles (p\u00a0= 0.96). Referrals were predominantly to medical doctors with limited engagement with other health professionals. Barriers included a lack of referral protocols and limited knowledge of other providers\u2019 roles. Most pharmacists expressed a willingness to improve care through better collaboration and education.\nConclusion:\u00a0Pharmacists play a pivotal role in PJD management and require better training, awareness and structured referral pathways to enhance multidisciplinary care and optimise patient outcomes.\nContribution: This study highlights the need for evidence-based referral guidelines and interprofessional education in pharmacy curricula to strengthen pharmacists\u2019 role in multidisciplinary PJD care.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.4102\/hsag.v31i0.3211","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,20]],"date-time":"2026-02-20T07:22:51Z","timestamp":1771572171000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.4102\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Assessing the knowledge, practices and collaborative readiness of community pharmacists\u2019 management of progressive joint disorders in South Africa"],"prefix":"10.4102","volume":"31","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0000-4500-3414","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Tumelo","family":"Modau","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/03rp50x72","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"University of the Witwatersrand"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3363-7695","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Demitri","family":"Constantinou","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/03rp50x72","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"University of the Witwatersrand"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6767-7110","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"An\u00e9","family":"Orchard","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/03rp50x72","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"University of the Witwatersrand"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"2580","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,23]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref0","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Aaseth, J.O., Finnes, T.E., Askim, M. & Alexander, J., 2024, \u2018The importance of vitamin K and the combination of vitamins K and D for calcium metabolism and bone health: A review\u2019, Nutrients 16(15), 2420. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/nu16152420","DOI":"10.3390\/nu16152420"},{"key":"ref1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Abdul Razzak, H.A., Syed Sulaiman, S.A., Khan, A.H. & Thomas, S., 2024, \u2018Attitudes of community pharmacists towards extending their professional roles in Oman\u2019, Journal of Pharmaceutical Policy and Practice 17(1), 1\u201316. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1080\/20523211.2024.2367018","DOI":"10.1080\/20523211.2024.2367018"},{"key":"ref2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Alzahrani, H., Alshehri, M.A., Alotaibi, M., Alhowimel, A., Alodaibi, F., Alamam, D. et al., 2022, \u2018Burden of musculoskeletal disorders in the gulf cooperation council countries, 1990\u20132019: Findings from the global burden of disease study 2019\u2019, Frontiers in Medicine 9(1), 1\u201313. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/fmed.2022.855414","DOI":"10.3389\/fmed.2022.855414"},{"key":"ref3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Amedi, D. & Gazerani, P., 2024, \u2018Deprescribing NSAIDs: The potential role of community pharmacists\u2019, Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland) 12(4), 1\u201321. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/pharmacy12040116","DOI":"10.3390\/pharmacy12040116"},{"key":"ref4","unstructured":"Aston, J. & Black, P., 2009, \u2018Does participation in formal postgraduate studies have a positive impact on pharmacists\u2019 professional activities?\u2019, The Pharmaceutical Journal 282(7553), 175\u2013179, viewed 20 July 2025, from https:\/\/pharmaceutical-journal.com\/article\/research\/does-participation-in-formal-postgraduate-studies-have-a-positive-impact-on-pharmacists-professional-activities."},{"key":"ref5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Balraj, D., Mntambo, N., Lembede, K.M., Madikane, M., Daniel, D.R. & Johnston, D., 2024, \u2018Identifying legitimate websites selling medicines in South Africa\u2019, Health SA Gesondheid 29, 1\u201312. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.4102\/hsag.v29i0.2732","DOI":"10.4102\/hsag.v29i0.2732"},{"key":"ref6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Bigham, M., 2023, \u2018Challenges, biases, and limitations in systematic reviews and meta-analyses: Addressing pitfalls in medical research methodologies\u2019, International Journal for Research in Applied Science and Engineering Technology 11(12), 1203\u20131215. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.22214\/ijraset.2023.57554","DOI":"10.22214\/ijraset.2023.57554"},{"key":"ref7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Birlik, A., 2023, \u2018Nutritional supplements for musculoskeletal Health\u2019, in D. 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