Introduction: Social capital has been defined as 'features of social organisation, such as trust, norms and networks, which can improve the functioning of a society by facilitating co-ordinated actions'.1 It is seen as a collective resource to strengthen local communities and increase their capacity for making healthy decisions in the face of material and structural disadvantage. The ways in which community pharmacy engages with issues around social capital has not been researched.2 This paper describes an exploratory project which set out to investigate how pharmacists in one area of Nottingham viewed the relevance of social capital to community pharmacy.

Methods: Depth interviews were carried out with eleven pharmacists working in a materially deprived area of Nottingham. Information describing social capital and health was sent to each interviewee. An interview guide was developed. The sample consisted of 8 white British and 3 south Asian pharmacists, 5 of whom were male and 5 female. Interviews were tape recorded, transcribed and analysed by LF and validated by PB.

Findings: Not surprisingly, almost all of those interviewed expressed little awareness of the term social capital, or how it might be linked with health. However, on reading the information provided, most respondents indicated that social capital had some relevance to community development issues and health, although there was considerable variability on this point between interviewees. Beyond the provision of leaflets or information, many questioned whether developing social capital should be a central aspect of the pharmacist's role, although a small number did enthusiastically embrace the idea. In particular, issues around remuneration for such a role were repeatedly stressed. Most participants indicated that they had some awareness of specific, local health problems, although less than half resided within the community that their pharmacy served. There were mixed views from participants about the ability of local agencies to impact on the health problems of the local community.

Discussion: Community pharmacists could be important 'social entrepreneurs' working to develop the material and social resources available to local communities.3 However, their ability to do so, is restricted by their limited understanding of the link between social capital and health, and an unwillingness to be involved in such activities in the absence of remuneration. On the other hand, this study did reveal a small number of participants who were positive about the engagement of community pharmacy with local community development issues / social capital. We suggest that there needs to better promotion of how pharmacy might engage with the broader social capital agenda.

References
1. Putnam, R. Bowling. Alone: the collapse and revival of American community. New York: Touchstone, 2000.
2. Bissell P, Anderson C & Blenkinsopp A. Has community pharmacy a role in dealing with health inequalities? Pharm J 2001; 267: 880.
3.Ghalamkari H, & Jenkins D. Can pharmacists be social entrepreneurs? Pharm J 2002; 268:358.