Exploring the Lived Experiences of Community Pharmacists in Deprescribing Practices for Older Adults: A Qualitative Phenomenological Study

Abstract

Deprescribing in geriatric pharmaceutical care has emerged as a critical component of patient safety and medication optimization. While existing studies have examined its clinical and procedural aspects, limited research has focused on the lived experiences of community pharmacists who implement deprescribing in daily practice. Despite growing expectations for pharmacists to take an active role, little is known about how they perceive, interpret, and emotionally navigate this responsibility within real-world contexts. This study addresses the question: how do community pharmacists experience deprescribing as part of their professional practice? Using hermeneutic phenomenological interviews with eight community pharmacists in Indonesia, this research explores the ethical, emotional, and relational dimensions of deprescribing from the pharmacists’ perspective. A structured qualitative approach guided the data collection and analysis, allowing for interpretive identification of key experiential themes.  The analysis revealed four core themes: ethical dilemmas in decision-making, clinical uncertainty, interprofessional role negotiation, and emotional labor in patient engagement. These findings highlight the complexity of deprescribing as a deeply human and context-sensitive practice, shaped by professional identity, empathy, and sociocultural values. By illuminating these experiential dimensions, the study contributes a more holistic understanding of deprescribing and underscores the need for supportive frameworks that integrate ethical and emotional considerations into pharmacy practice. The results offer valuable insights for future research and policy development aimed at empowering pharmacists in the deprescribing process.