The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a global pandemic having no therapy and pharmacists being a part of the healthcare system had a vital role in the management of COVID-19. The purpose of this study is to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAPs) of community pharmacists (CPs) regarding COVID-19. An online survey was conducted among 393 CPs in two provinces of Pakistan during the lockdown period. A validated questionnaire (Cronbach alpha, 0.745) was used for data collection. All statistical analysis was analyzed by using SPSS version 21. Among 393 participants, 71.5% (n=281) had good knowledge, 44% (n=175) positive attitude and 57.3% (n=225) had good practice regarding COVID-19. Social media (45.29%, n=178) was reported as the main source to seek information of COVID-19. Good knowledge, age ≥ 26 years and Ph.D. degree level were the substantial determinants (p= <0.05) of a good attitude. Similarly, community pharmacist who had an experience of >5 years, hold a Ph.D. degree, good knowledge and good attitude had higher odds of good practice as compared to reference categories (p= <0.05). In short, majority of CPs had good knowledge, but had a poor attitude and practice towards the COVID-19. Standard-structured educational and counselling programs for CPs regarding COVID-19 are needed for effective management.
Amidst to current Coronavirus infectious disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the international pharmaceutical federation stated that pharmacists being a part of the healthcare system had a crucial role in the management cycle of COVID-19 outbreak. The purpose of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of community pharmacists, to snapshot their current preparedness and awareness regarding COVID-19. An online survey was conducted among a sample of 393 community pharmacists from two provinces; Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan during a period of strict lockdown (10th to 30th April 2020). A validated (Cronbach alpha= 0.077) self-administered questionnaire comprised of five sections (Demographics, source of information, knowledge, attitude, and practice) was used for data collection. Logistic regression was applied to find potential factors associated with good knowledge, attitude, and practice by using SPSS version 21. Of total 393 participants, 71.5% (n=281) had good knowledge, 44% (n=175) had positive attitude and 57.3% (n=225) had good practice regarding COVID-19. Social media (45.29%, n=178) was reported as the main source to seek information regarding COVID-19. Results revealed that the age of ≥26 years, Ph.D. degree level, and good knowledge were the substantial determinants (P<0.05) of a good attitude. Similarly, community pharmacist who had an experience of >5 years, hold a Ph.D. degree, good knowledge and good attitude had higher odds of good practice compared to reference categories (P<0.05). The findings demonstrated that the majority of community pharmacists had good knowledge, but had a poor attitude and practice towards the COVID-19. This study also highlighted the disparity in some aspects of knowledge, attitude, and practice that must be addressed in future educational, awareness, and counselling programs.
Background
Pharmacovigilance is an identifying and responding process against an adverse drug reaction (ADRs) problem encountered in the drug administration. ADRs are among the common reasons for morbidity and fatality in pediatrics throughout the globe.
Main body
A systemic review of the previous 10 years (2010–2019) published studies were taken into consideration to describe observational studies on ADRs and to determine the incidence and characteristics of ADRs in pediatrics. Electronic relevant literature was searched in PMC, PubMed, Google Scholar, and OvidSP databases using MESH heading and text words. The titles, text, and abstracts were checked for patients below 18 years of age, nature of ADRs, observational studies (prospective or retrospective), and maximum information was recorded to count their frequency. The studies which discussed specific or particular drug exposures were not selected in this review. Of the 36,689 titles retrieved, 27 studies were selected for full-text review. Ten observational studies were added in the final review. Observational studies on pediatric were carried out in seven distinct nations. The predominant study design within observational methodological studies was prospective (n = 5, 50%). The overall average occurrence of ADRs incidence was 9.52%. ADRs reporting in male patients (54.6%) were more than females (45.4%). The severe types of ADRs were reported in four studies. Anti-microbials were the most common class of drugs related to ADRs.
Conclusion
This systematic review reveals that ADRs in pediatrics are serious public health problems. Periodic drug surveillance studies are mandatory for the safe and appropriate usage of medicines in pediatrics.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.