Background and importance The importance of health promotion and disease prevention among the general public has been reinforced following the COVID-19 pandemic. Although national campaigns have been active for years, reports have highlighted the opportunities for the greater use of pharmacy teams for improving this, in light of their location, accessibility, convenience and relationship with the public.

Aim and objectives To assess the level of knowledge on important health topics of patients and learn their preferences for future learning in order to develop a targeted and effective health promotion programme.

Material and methods In July 2019, patients waiting for a prescription to be filled in a hospital outpatient pharmacy were approached for inclusion in the study. Those who consented were interviewed via a confidential questionnaire (revised following a pilot on 5 patients) until 100 patients were recruited. The results were submitted into Excel for analysis.

Results The participation rate was approximately 30% (47% men and 53% women, aged 18–70 years). Approximately 10% of patients were unaware of the risks of high blood pressure and 28% had never had their blood pressure monitored. 28% did not know the maximum recommended units of alcohol permitted per week. All smokers (28%) had been unsuccessful in previous attempts to stop smoking. Although all patients were aware of the correct signs of breast cancer, 17% of patients were unsure of the signs of prostate cancer. 40% of patients were unable to give two correct symptoms of depression and some patients mentioned inaccurate ones. Although over 75% of patients preferred to receive health promotion information via a one-to-one consultation with pharmacy staff, 74% of patients thought watching health promotion videos while waiting for a prescription was a good idea. All patients had access to a mobile phone or a computer and were happy to receive information via their electronic devices.

Conclusion and relevance The study highlighted gaps in knowledge, particularly in the areas of alcohol intake, depression and prostate cancer, giving ideas of where to target future health promotion campaigns. Although patients prefer personal consultations with pharmacy staff, novel ways of delivering health promotion, including the use of phones and electronic devices, should be considered.

Conflict of interest No conflict of interest