Nurses’ Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practice in Relation to Pharmacovigilance and Adverse Drug Reaction Reporting: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Aim. To describe and synthesize aspects of knowledge, attitudes, and practice regarding pharmacovigilance and adverse drug reaction (ADR) reporting and to explore associated barriers from a nurse perspective. Methods. A systematic review was conducted. Electronic databases including MEDLINE, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Knowledge from January 2010 to October 2020 were searched. Original observational studies that were written in English and which focused on nurses’ knowledge, attitudes, practice, and perceived barriers regarding pharmacovigilance and ADR reporting in various healthcare settings were included. Results. Twenty-three studies published in English from 2010 to 2020 were retrieved during the search process. Overall, in the knowledge domain, the median percentages of nurses who were aware of the definitions of ADRs were 74.1%, while only 26.3% were aware of the adverse drug reaction reporting form. In the attitude domain, 84.6% of nurses believed ADR reporting to be important for patient/medicine safety and 37.1% had a fear of legal liability following ADR reporting. Although 67.1% of nurses encountered ADRs during their professional life, only 21.2% had a history of ADR reporting. In addition, lack of knowledge/training (median: 47.1%) was identified as the most common barrier in ADR reporting from a nursing viewpoint. Conclusion. Despite positive nurse attitudes, knowledge and practice in relation to pharmacovigilance activities and ADR reporting did not occur regularly or often. Improving nurses’ knowledge through in-service training and degree-level education and addressing the main barriers of ADR reporting may help to achieve an improved level of reporting.

Practical Considerations of PRN Medicines Management: An Integrative Systematic Review

“…According to our review findings, healthcare professionals’ competencies for PRN medicines management influenced the safety of the medication process. Their pharmacological competence as having sufficient knowledge and skills to manage real-life medication circumstances and making appropriate decisions ( Sulosaari et al, 2011 ; Salehi et al, 2021 ) are affected by the complexity of the patient’s medication processes ( Sulosaari et al, 2011 ; Lichtner et al, 2016 ). Healthcare providers need education and training about the application of alternative and non-pharmacological interventions for relieving patients’ symptoms ( Molloy et al, 2012 ).…”

Barriers and facilitators to pharmacovigilance activities in Pakistan: A healthcare professionals-based survey

“…Lack of confidence in discussing a suspected ADR with other colleagues is another major barrier. The studies have identified that a lack of confidence in determining whether a drug has caused an ADR or otherwise could also be a determinant of underreporting [27,[43][44][45]. A study by Gupta et al (2018) showed that 7.5% of participants including pharmacists and nurses identified a lack of confidence to report an ADR as a barrier [46].…”

“…As Iffat et al (2014), Nisa et al (2018) and Syed et al (2018) indicated that HCPs had poor knowledge about ADR reporting systems and the unavailability of incentives, and a professional environment hindered the ADR reporting [21][22][23]. Previous studies have documented that awareness about the PV system, education and training can improve the ADR reporting among HCPs [23][24][25][26][27]. A recent study has analyzed the core indicators responsible for a functional PV system in Pakistan [19].…”

Clinical Impact of Implementing a Nurse-Led Adverse Drug Reaction Profile in Older Adults Prescribed Multiple Medicines in UK Primary Care: A Study Protocol for a Cluster-Randomised Controlled Trial

“…Such demands require teamwork, and while the importance of interprofessional collaboration is widely acknowledged, most commonly it is the doctor–pharmacist partnership that is described in the literature [ 24 ]. The nursing contribution to prevention and management of ADRs has traditionally focused on preventing medication administration errors [ 25 , 26 , 27 ], with nurse monitoring for adverse effects of medicines often being an aspiration, rather than reality [ 27 , 28 ].…”

“…Nurses’ ability to detect adverse drug reactions may be limited by lack of clarity regarding their role [ 29 ] or the extent of their pharmacological knowledge [ 27 , 30 ], and a comprehensive tool that does not require extensive specialist expertise could facilitate such monitoring. The ADRe Profile [ 31 ] is a structured nurse-led intervention designed to help health care professionals detect adverse side effects and adverse events related to patients’ primary care medicines and to review general health and well-being, in case this has worsened as a result of prescribed medicines.…”