Knowledge, attitude, and practices of Community pharmacists about COVID-19: A cross-sectional survey in two provinces of Pakistan

Abstract

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.

COVID-19: What should health professionals know? Assessment of Knowledge, attitude, and practice of community pharmacists in a developing country

“…The majority of the study participants in the current study were found to have a positive attitude toward COVID-19. The current finding was also consistent with studies conducted in Vietnam and Pakistan, 30,36 in which the majority of the respondents were found to have a positive attitude toward COVID-19. However, the finding was different from a study conducted in Uganda, in which the majority of the HCPs did not have a positive attitude toward COVID-19.…”

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice and Associated Factors towards COVID-19 among College Students in Amhara Region, Ethiopia; A Cross-Sectional Study

“…In this study, the overall good level of knowledge regarding COVID-19 pandemic among college students was 69.6%. This finding is lower than studies conducted in Debre Birhan University (73.8%) [34], eight teaching hospitals Ethiopian (88.2%) [27], Indian medical students (94.5%) [31], eight countries of five continents (80.8%) determinants [35], Malaysia (80.5%) [36], Tanzania (84.4%) [37], Sudan (90.6%) [38], Pakistan (71.5%) [28]. The discrepancy might be due to differences in cut-values used to categorize the knowledge levels, sample size, and sociocultural various between study settings.…”

“…This finding is lower than studies conducted in eight teaching hospitals, Ethiopia (94.7%) [27], Indian medical students (93.7%) [31], Syrian residents (63.5%) [39], Malaysian residents (83.1%) [36], Bangladesh (62.3%) [24], Sudan (81.8%) [38], 10 universities in Shaanxi Province, China (73.8%) [49], Uganda (72.4%) [50], and India (97.3%) [51]. However, this result is higher than the studies conducted in Pakistan (44%) [28], and Makerere University Teaching Hospitals (21%) [25]. The discrepancy may be subjected to variation in the cut-values to measure the positive and negative attitude levels.…”

“…This finding is lower than a study done in Syria (73.8%) [39], Pakistan (80.5%) [44], Sudan (89.9%) [38], students in 10 universities in Shaanxi Province, China (87.9%) [49], Uganda (85.3%) [50]. However, this finding is higher than studies conducted in Debre Birhan University Undergraduate students (49.5%) [34], Bangladesh (55.1%) [24], Pakistan (57.3%) [28]. The differences in the practice of preventive measures could have been subjected to variation in the cut-off values to classify good or poor practice.…”

“…However, studies revealed that the communities have shown poor knowledge and negative attitude towards the preventive measures of COVID pandemic [22][23][24]. Besides, the studies conducted across the globe have been investigated the knowledge, attitude, and practices toward the preventive measures of COVID-19 pandemic predominantly focused on health care workers and patients [25][26][27][28].…”