Background:
Antibiotics have changed the face of medicine. They are used by almost everyone but a lot of lapse is seen between their usage and awareness about them. A lot of problems stem from this issue which are getting in the way of their effective use. There is an immense need to address this matter and this was the driving force behind this research.
Methods: In this cross-sectional study, Patients who visited outpatient departments of Allied Hospitals of Rawalpindi Medical College i.e. Holy Family hospital and Benazir Bhutto hospital were interviewed to assess their level of awareness about antibiotics’ adverse effects and their knowledge about antibiotic resistance and compliance. Relationship between socio-demographic factors and level …show more content…
In Pakistan, no such study has been undertaken yet. Although it is a very grave issue which needs to be addressed urgently as antibiotics are a global phenomenon which are prescribed in abundance daily. Simple steps taken for awareness among patients can have magnanimous effect on antibiotic outcome. To find out which steps to take and how to deal with this dilemma, it is crucial to carry out this study. With the aim of improvement of level of patient’s awareness regarding antibiotic adverse effects and to propose recommendations for improvement of their awareness, we undertook this study.
Methods:
A cross- sectional study was carried out on 96 patients visiting the outpatient department of allied hospitals of Rawalpindi Medical College who were interviewed regarding the adverse effects of antibiotics. A 19 item structured interview guide was used to analyze level of awareness compared with other socio-demographic factors like gender, age, occupation, education, socioeconomic status, sources of awareness etc. Subjects included were exclusively those between ages 15 to 65 years. Anyone belonging to bio-medical professional and admitted patients were …show more content…
This percentage is significantly lower in comparison to a study carried out among the general population of Malaysia which showed level of awareness to be more than 75 %. 11The reason cited for the lack of awareness of majority of participants was that they blindly followed the prescription without knowing the type of medicines. Among those who were aware of antibiotics most had knowledge regarding the adverse effects of antibiotics. Friends and relatives being major the source of knowledge. (41%)
Making the situation graver, 15% of the participants had used an antibiotic, over the counter recently. This is consistent with world-wide self-medication rate i.e. 13% in US, 11% in Australia and 14% in South Africa. 12
In our study 24% of the participants had knowledge about the importance of completing course of antibiotics. Similar results were obtained in a study carried out in Malawi where 30 out of 54 participants were unaware of the importance of completing antibiotic course.13
Only 20% of our respondents were aware of the development of resistance with excessive use of antibiotics. This is in contrast to Chinese population where only 9% of the participants were unaware of the term antibiotic resistance.
Antibiotics have changed the face of medicine. They are used by almost everyone but a lot of lapse is seen between their usage and awareness about them. A lot of problems stem from this issue which are getting in the way of their effective use. There is an immense need to address this matter and this was the driving force behind this research.
Methods: In this cross-sectional study, Patients who visited outpatient departments of Allied Hospitals of Rawalpindi Medical College i.e. Holy Family hospital and Benazir Bhutto hospital were interviewed to assess their level of awareness about antibiotics’ adverse effects and their knowledge about antibiotic resistance and compliance. Relationship between socio-demographic factors and level …show more content…
In Pakistan, no such study has been undertaken yet. Although it is a very grave issue which needs to be addressed urgently as antibiotics are a global phenomenon which are prescribed in abundance daily. Simple steps taken for awareness among patients can have magnanimous effect on antibiotic outcome. To find out which steps to take and how to deal with this dilemma, it is crucial to carry out this study. With the aim of improvement of level of patient’s awareness regarding antibiotic adverse effects and to propose recommendations for improvement of their awareness, we undertook this study.
Methods:
A cross- sectional study was carried out on 96 patients visiting the outpatient department of allied hospitals of Rawalpindi Medical College who were interviewed regarding the adverse effects of antibiotics. A 19 item structured interview guide was used to analyze level of awareness compared with other socio-demographic factors like gender, age, occupation, education, socioeconomic status, sources of awareness etc. Subjects included were exclusively those between ages 15 to 65 years. Anyone belonging to bio-medical professional and admitted patients were …show more content…
This percentage is significantly lower in comparison to a study carried out among the general population of Malaysia which showed level of awareness to be more than 75 %. 11The reason cited for the lack of awareness of majority of participants was that they blindly followed the prescription without knowing the type of medicines. Among those who were aware of antibiotics most had knowledge regarding the adverse effects of antibiotics. Friends and relatives being major the source of knowledge. (41%)
Making the situation graver, 15% of the participants had used an antibiotic, over the counter recently. This is consistent with world-wide self-medication rate i.e. 13% in US, 11% in Australia and 14% in South Africa. 12
In our study 24% of the participants had knowledge about the importance of completing course of antibiotics. Similar results were obtained in a study carried out in Malawi where 30 out of 54 participants were unaware of the importance of completing antibiotic course.13
Only 20% of our respondents were aware of the development of resistance with excessive use of antibiotics. This is in contrast to Chinese population where only 9% of the participants were unaware of the term antibiotic resistance.