(1103) Stakeholder Development of Drug Checking (Fentanyl Test Strips and Xylazine Test Strips) Training for North Carolina Community Pharmacists

Objectives: Community pharmacists are one of the most accessible health professionals in the United States, particularly in rural areas. As such, they are well-positioned to improve access to harm reduction tools such as fentanyl, xylazine, and other test strips (FTS, XTS, etc.) Survey results from NC community pharmacists indicate that pharmacists are willing to sell and counsel on FTS but would like FTS training. Currently, no training focused on drug testing strips has been developed specifically for community pharmacy staff. Our objective was to co-design a 30-minute online training module about drug testing strips specifically for community pharmacy staff.

Methods: Over a period of 7 months, a six-member community development panel including community pharmacy staff, harm reductionists, and pharmacy education experts worked with the study team to co-design the training. The study team included 3 practicing rural community pharmacists, 2 harm reduction experts, a pharmacy association practice advancement staff person, and a patient-provider communication expert. Formative data from a previous survey of NC community pharmacists were presented to the panel and guided content development. Panelists met online monthly to discuss what content should be included in the training and how to best approach this highly stigmatized subject matter. Notes were taken during each meeting to document training priorities and suggestions for presentation of content.

Results: The development panel recommended the training be divided into 5 modules. To better inform pharmacy staff about drug testing strips, current statistics regarding the presence of fentanyl and xylazine in the drug supply, as well as an overview of the test strips, how they are used, and their sensitivity/specificity, were suggested to be included in Module 1 (What and Why of Test Strips). Module 2 (Why Pharmacies?) provides context about where the test strips are currently accessed and why pharmacies would be a valuable location to distribute them. Module 3 (Best Practices of Testing) provides greater context regarding how one would utilize the test strips, including a video showing how to test, how to interpret results, and example references for testing. Module 4 (Logistics) provides information about where to order test strips, cost information, and differences between different brands of tests. Module 5 (FAQs) aims to answer frequently asked questions (FAQs) regarding test strips, including legality, how to refer to and partner with harm reduction organizations, and example advertising resources.

Conclusions: The training will be the first brief, online training for community pharmacists about drug testing strips, codesigned with community pharmacy and harm reduction experts. This training content is relevant to pharmacy staff and addresses knowledge and implementation barriers.