Public attitudes towards community pharmacy in Arabic speaking Middle Eastern countries: A systematic review

BackgroundOver the last few years, pharmacy practice in the Arab regions of the Middle East has started to change and develop. There have been small but promising steps to recognize the importance of extending community pharmacists’ roles to meet the expanding public healthcare demands. ObjectivesThis systematic review aims to identify, synthesize and assess the quality of the literature in the Middle East concerning public attitudes on community pharmacist role and services and in relation to public perceptions on strategies to improve pharmacy services and the image of community pharmacist. MethodsA systematic search of 11 electronic databases was conducted to identify all published relevant studies from inception till January 2020. Data was extracted using a designed and tested tool. Studies were assessed for quality using Crowe Critical Appraisal Tool. ResultsThe final study results included 36 studies of which 31 adopted a cross-sectional-survey-based design. Included studies were published between 2004 and 2019. Most studies were done in Saudi Arabia (n = 11) or the United Arab Emirates (UAE) (n = 10). We identified four overarching themes across included studies 1) Use of Community Pharmacies; 2) Attitudes towards Community Pharmacist role; 3) Attitudes towards Current Community Pharmacy Services and 4) Strategies to Improve Community Pharmacy Practice. The most common reason for visiting a community pharmacy was to purchase a prescription or over-the counter-medication. The most common factors that affected patients’ choice of a particular pharmacy included convenient pharmacy location, availability of a good range of products or medicines, friendliness of the pharmacy staff and convenient pharmacy opening hours. There was a general public perception of community pharmacist as a business oriented person. Expectations of pharmacist duties included treatment of minor health ailments, consultation on over-the-counter medications and parapharmaceutical products, and accuracy checking of dispensed medications. Overall satisfaction with community pharmacy varied between the studies and ranged from 33% to 67.1%. Most commonly reported recommendations to improve pharmacy practice were provision of diagnostic, screening and monitoring services, keeping patient records in the pharmacy, advice on minor illness and provision of a private area for consultation. Seven articles were considered of low quality and 13 articles were considered of high quality. ConclusionsWhile the public in the Middle East has a good understanding of the basic duties of a community pharmacist, there is lack of awareness of advanced pharmaceutical services. Decision makers in Middle Eastern countries should set strategies to improve community pharmacist professional image and competence beyond medication dispensing.This work was funded by Qatar University, Qatar Student Grant (QUST-1-CPH-2019-4)

Prevalence and some risk factors with therapeutic trial of sheep dermatophytosis in Egypt

Dermatophytosis is a fungal disease that affects the superficial skin layers and hair of farm animals all over the world including Egypt. Despite being a self-limiting disease, it has serious effects on public health and devastating economic losses due to its serious skin damage, a long course of treatment, and loss of weight. This study determines the most prevalent species of dermatophyte in sheep and identifies the incriminated species by both microscopic and culture methods with an assessment of animal and environmental risk factors. Moreover, it evaluates the effectiveness of three antifungal compounds (tioconazole cream and clotrimazole spray, and fluconazole capsule), on twenty-four naturally infected sheep. One hundred and three sheep from Sharkia and Dakahalia governorates were examined with clinically suggestive lesions from 2018 to 2019. 47.6% of the cases were positive for the dermatophyte infection either by clinical signs, microscopic or culture, or both. The highest registered infection rate is in males, at the age of ˂ 6 months, and in the winter season. Three antifungal medications are used for the first time in the treatment of ovine dermatophytosis. They are proved to have been effective in subsiding skin lesions with hair growth to return to its normal clinical state with a 100% curative rate. The treatment with preferable and easily applicable topical cures, especially tioconazole cream, is highly effective in the short run. This cream treatment is easily applicable and provides a good alternative to the traditional antifungal medication for sheep. Consequently, such treatment can reduce the possibility of spreading the infection by other animals, and may allow the adaption of efficient control measures

Flexible Bench-Scale Recirculating Flow CPC Photoreactor for Solar Photocatalytic Degradation of Methylene Blue Using Removable TiO 2

TiO2 immobilized on polyethylene (PET) nonwoven sheet was used in the solar photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue (MB). TiO2 Evonik Aeroxide P25 was used in this study. The amount of loaded TiO2 on PET was approximately 24%. Immobilization of TiO2 on PET was conducted by dip coating process followed by exposing to mild heat and pressure. TiO2/PET sheets were wrapped on removable Teflon rods inside home-made bench-scale recirculating flow Compound Parabolic Concentrator (CPC) photoreactor prototype (platform 0.7 × 0.2 × 0.4 m3). CPC photoreactor is made up of seven low iron borosilicate glass tubes connected in series. CPC reflectors are made of stainless steel 304. The prototype was mounted on a platform tilted at 30°N local latitude in Cairo. A centrifugal pump was used to circulate water containing methylene blue (MB) dye inside the glass tubes. Efficient photocatalytic degradation of MB using TiO2/PET was achieved upon the exposure to direct sunlight. Chemical oxygen demand (COD) analyses reveal the complete mineralization of MB. Durability of TiO2/PET composite was also tested under sunlight irradiation. Results indicate only 6% reduction in the amount of TiO2 after seven cycles. No significant change was observed for the physicochemical characteristics of TiO2/PET after the successive irradiation processes

Assessing Pharmacists Knowledge and Attitude Toward the Direct Oral Anticoagulants in Qatar

Pharmacists were found to play a key role in anticoagulation care. In order to make an appropriate selection and counselling regarding direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs), pharmacists should be knowledgeable and abiding by evidence-based practice. We aim in this study to assess the knowledge and practices of practicing hospital and community pharmacists in Qatar regarding DOACs and their reflection on the dispensing and patient education. A prospective cross-sectional survey was developed. It included questions on demographic and professional characteristics. Additionally, it evaluated the awareness regarding safety, efficacy, and dispensing of DOACs. Lastly, a separate question was used to address the participant’s satisfaction with their knowledge. A total response were received from 211 pharmacists participating in the survey. Overall awareness score was moderate (41.6% ± 26%). These scores were in alignment with participants’ self-satisfaction with knowledge on DOACs (72% of participants were not satisfied). Being a clinical pharmacist, of male gender, and with a board certification were factors associated with increased awareness on DOACs. Results from this survey point to the importance of having more educational activities in order to improve pharmacist’s knowledge of DOACs.The authors disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: The publication of this article was funded by the Qatar National Library.Scopu

Determination, occurrence, and treatment of saccharin in water: A review

Saccharin (SAC) is an emerging contaminant, widely detected in the environment, with potential ecotoxicity risks to aqueous organisms and human beings. Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are key sources and sinks of SAC, and play a vital role in eliminating SAC entering the environment. An overview is provided of the potential ecotoxicity of SAC, its occurrence in the aqueous environment, and its degradation performance in WWTPs. SAC treatments, including physical, chemical (mainly advanced oxidation processes AOPs), biological, and hybrid processes, and possible degradation mechanisms are also considered. Of the various SAC removal processes, we find that adsorption-based physical methods exhibit relatively poor performance in terms of SAC removal, whereas chemical methods, especially hydroxy radical-mediated oxidation processes, possess excellent capacities for SAC elimination. Although biological degradation can be efficient at removing SAC, its efficiency depends on oxygen supply and the presence of other co-existing pollutants. Hybrid aerobic biodegradation processes combined with other treatments including AOPs could achieve complete SAC reduction. Furthermore, novel adsorbents, sustainable chemical methods, and bioaugmentation technologies, informed by in-depth studies of degradation mechanisms and the metabolic toxicity of intermediates, are expected further to enhance SAC removal efficiency and enable comprehensive control of SAC potential risks

Photoelectrochemical properties of dye-dispersing allophane–titania composite electrodes

Dye-dispersing allophane-titania composite electrodes were prepared from titanium alkoxide sols containing dye and allophane. The photoelectric conversion properties of the electrodes were investigated by photoelectrochemical measurements. The photocurrent values in the UV range decreased with an increase in the allophane content, whereas those in the visible range were increased by adding 1.0% (Al/Ti ratio) allophane. As a small amount of allophane nanoparticles were highly dispersed in the titania electrodes, the dye molecules were dispersed in the electrodes without decreasing the efficiency of the electron injection from the dye to the titania conduction band. The dye molecules dispersed on the titania nanoparticle surface were capped with allophane nanoparticles which prevented desorption. The dye molecules strongly interacted with the titania nanoparticle surface and efficiently injected the excited electrons into the titania conduction band. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.ArticleAPPLIED CLAY SCIENCE. 107:138-144 (2015)journal articl

The interaction and photostability of some xanthenes and selected azo sensitizing dyes with TiO2 nanoparticles

We have tested simple Graetzel-type solar cells using semiconductor thin films consisting of TiO2 nanoparticles and some electron injecting dyes. The possibility of using xanthenes (rhodamine 101, fluorescein and 5(6)-carboxyfluorescein) and selected azo dyes (alizarin yellow R, alizarin yellow 2G and carboxyaesenazo) as sensitizers has been explored. Fluorescence and electronic absorption measurements revealed complex formation between the chosen dyes and the surface of the colloidal TiO2. The apparent association constants (Kapp) of the surface complexes have been estimated and are correlated with the dyeinduced negative shifts of the reduction potential of colloidal TiO2 nanoparticles. Moreover, due to its utmost importance, photostability of the organic dyes in absence and presence of colloidal TiO2 nanoparticles and the influence of the used electrolyte have been examined. The results point to a remarkable enhancement of photostability in the presence of the electrolyte (I3−/I−), which is attributed to fast regeneration of the neutral dye via the redox couple of the electrolyte. Furthermore, photocurrent action spectrum of the fabricated and tested DSC shows the origin of photoelectric output to be optical absorption of the dye used