Pharmaceutical Care in Children: Self-reported knowledge, attitudes and competency of final-year pharmacy students in Jordan

Objectives: Pharmacists require a baseline level of knowledge in paediatric pharmaceutical care in order to be able to adequately care for paediatric patients and counsel their families. This study aimed to explore the self-reported knowledge, attitudes and competency of final-year pharmacy students in Jordan regarding paediatric pharmaceutical care. Methods: This study took place in Jordan between November 2016 and May 2017. A 28-item questionnaire was designed and administered to 400 students from all pharmacy programmes in Jordan during their final year of training. Results: A total of 354 students agreed to take part in the study (response rate: 88.5%). Most respondents (95.2%) were aware of the term ‘paediatrics’. However, almost one-third of the respondents (30.5%) reported never having taken paediatric dose calculation courses and more than half (55.6%) were unfamiliar with the term ‘off-label medicines’. Moreover, most respondents (65.1%) had low knowledge scores (≤2 out of 5) when presented with realistic paediatric case scenarios. There were no significant differences in knowledge and attitudes between undergraduate and doctoral students or between those from public or private universities (P >0.05). Conclusion: The findings of this study highlight an alarming deficiency in paediatric pharmaceutical knowledge among final-year pharmacy students in Jordan. As such, paediatric-related content should be emphasised in the pharmacy curricula of Jordanian universities so that pharmacy students receive more formalised education and more extensive training in this area. Keywords: Pharmaceutical Care; Pediatrics; Pharmacy Students; Knowledge; Attitudes; Competency-Based Education; Jordan

Exploring perception and hesitancy toward COVID-19 vaccine: A study from Jordan

Vaccination against COVID-19 may present the most effective strategy to control current viral pandemic. The success of delivering mass vaccination, on the scale of what would be applied to contain COVID-19, largely depends on the compliance of the public to programs mandated by public health officials. This study was aimed to evaluate the perception and possible hesitance of people in Jordan toward a tentative COVID-19 vaccine using self-administrated online survey. During the study period, a total of 1287 agreed to participate in the study. More than half of the participants (n = 734, 57%) were females and the majority (n = 893, 69%) had a University degree. Most of the participants (n = 871, 68%) believed that scientists have adequate tools to develop a safe and efficacious COVID-19 vaccine and two-third of them (n = 861, 67%) believed that developing vaccines would end the pandemic. However, around half of them (n = 665, 52%) reported not having adequate information on the benefits of COVID-19 vaccination. Preference of study participants to achieve immunity against COVID-19 using natural way was the most commonly reported reason to refuse vaccination (n = 826, 64%), followed by their concern about adverse effects associated with the vaccine (n = 781, 61%). In conclusion, the sampled participants showed an overall positive attitude toward receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. Educational campaigns using television and social media are recommended to better inform the public of the benefits of COVID-19 vaccine in reaching a “herd immunity” based strategy to control the current pandemic

Public Knowledge and Perceptions about the Emerging Human Mpox in Jordan: A Cross-Sectional Study

Hundreds of human mpox cases are spreading outside of Western and Central Africa, which could be considered a significant world health problem. In this study, we sought to assess public knowledge and perceptions of human mpox. The study was a cross-sectional survey conducted in Jordan in September–October 2022. All participants were approached through social media portals. A total of 1195 participants agreed to participate in this study. The participants showed a low median knowledge score about human mpox (4.0 out of 15.0, IQR = 5.0), with only 27.9% of the participants (n = 334) correctly identifying that human mpox is not a bacterial disease, and around half of them (n = 589, 49.3%) knowing that this disease affects both genders. Higher monthly income (≥400 JD/month) was significantly associated with better knowledge about the disease. Social media was the most comprehensive source of information about mpox (n = 1018, 85.2%). Finally, 57.3% of the participants (n = 685) believed that mpox would affect social and economic life, like the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings highlight the urgent need for systematic strategies that should be promoted to increase public knowledge of mpox, which will be critical in improving the capacity to respond to the disease

An audit on parental attitudes towards medicines used in children

Introduction There is growing concerns regarding the use of medicines in children. Therefore, many strategies were implemented to improve such use and make safe and effective medicines more available for children. Enhancing interaction between parents and health care providers plays an important role in insuring the proper use of medicines. In order to optimize such interaction, the attitudes, beliefs and practices of parents toward medicine use in children need to be explored. Methods A validated questionnaire was administered via face to face interviews to 1000 parents attending pediatric outpatient clinics with their children in order to investigate their attitudes toward children's medicines. Results The majority of respondents (83.2%) were mothers. The majority participants (84.4%) agreed that medicines are necessary in treating illnesses, 80% of the parents had worries about the side effects and interactions of medicines, and 60% of the parents said they try to avoid giving medicines to their children. Moreover, parents in this study varied considerably in their views toward prescription and over-the- counter medicines. More than half of the participants (55.2%) declared that doctors in Jordan prescribe antibiotics to children too easily. Conclusion Participants had positive attitudes toward the necessity of medicines for ill children. However, a considerable proportion of the parents had negative attitudes toward children's medicines with respect to their side effects and interactions, their capability of disturbing the body's own capability of healing illnesses, their unnatural characteristic and other aspects related to medicines

Awareness of pharmacy researchers about the national research code of ethics: A study from Jordan

Objective: In Jordan, research ethics have been subject to increasingly formal regulations and structuring. Recently the Ministry of Higher Education and Research Published the National Research Code of Ethics. However, little is known about the awareness of pharmacology researchers of this code and the extent of its applicability to their research. Methods: Purposeful sampling through institutions’ websites was used to identify staff members with excellent profiles from 20 Faculties of Pharmacy in Jordan. After obtaining the required approvals, in-depth interviews were conducted, recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using NVivo 11 Software. The interviews followed a previously prepared and validated interview guide that covered various aspects of education, research, and training. Key findings: Eighteen members of staff agreed to take part in the study. Qualitative analysis revealed three main themes each concerning respondents’ awareness of the National Code of Research Ethics in Jordan. The emerging themes were: the lack of awareness regarding the code of ethics, the need for clear guidelines for pharmacology research in Jordan, and the need for further workshops and training courses for pharmacology researchers. Conclusion: This study highlights a lack of awareness regarding the presence of the National Research Ethics Code among pharmacology researchers in Jordan. This might have negative implications on medical research. It was thought that the code of ethics should be incorporated in postgraduate pharmacy education, training courses for pharmacy researchers, and workshops for pharmacy academic staff

An audit on parental attitudes towards medicines used in children

Introduction: There is growing concerns regarding the use of medicines in children. Therefore, many strategies were implemented to improve such use and make safe and effective medicines more available for children. Enhancing interaction between parents and health care providers plays an important role in insuring the proper use of medicines. In order to optimize such interaction, the attitudes, beliefs and practices of parents toward medicine use in children need to be explored. Methods: A validated questionnaire was administered via face to face interviews to 1000 parents attending pediatric outpatient clinics with their children in order to investigate their attitudes toward children's medicines. Results: The majority of respondents (83.2%) were mothers. The majority participants (84.4%) agreed that medicines are necessary in treating illnesses, 80% of the parents had worries about the side effects and interactions of medicines, and 60% of the parents said they try to avoid giving medicines to their children. Moreover, parents in this study varied considerably in their views toward prescription and over-the- counter medicines. More than half of the participants (55.2%) declared that doctors in Jordan prescribe antibiotics to children too easily. Conclusion: Participants had positive attitudes toward the necessity of medicines for ill children. However, a considerable proportion of the parents had negative attitudes toward children's medicines with respect to their side effects and interactions, their capability of disturbing the body's own capability of healing illnesses, their unnatural characteristic and other aspects related to medicines. Keywords: Parents, Attitudes, Medicines, Children, Jorda

Perceptions and attitudes towards off-label dispensing for pediatric patients, a study of hospital based pharmacists in Jordan

Background: With growing responsibility of the pharmacists in ensuring public health and safe medicine use, an understanding of the issues surrounding off-label prescribing is crucial to allow pharmacists to make informed decisions about such practice. The aim of this study is to assess the perceptions and attitudes of hospital based pharmacists toward off-label medicine dispensing to children. Methods: After obtaining the required approvals, a validated questionnaire about off-label dispensing to pediatric patients was administered to 250 randomly selected hospital pharmacists. Results: One hundred and fifty (150) completed questionnaires were returned. Less than half of the respondents (44%, n = 66) admitted to being familiar with the concept of off-label dispensing, claiming to have obtained this knowledge basically through their dispensing experience rather than education. A minority of respondents (36%, n = 54) reported dispensing off-label medicines within their practice knowingly. The majority of respondents had concerns regarding the efficacy (82%, n = 123) and safety (98%, n = 147) of off-label medicines. The most common reasons given by respondents for a dispensed prescription being off label were younger age than recommended (88%, n = 132). Most of respondents (94%, n = 141) claimed to double check the calculations of doses of medicines before dispensing off-label medicines and 60% (n = 90) of them felt that parents and guardians should be told when an off-label medicine has been prescribed for their children. Conclusion: The majority of respondents were not familiar with the concept of offlabel medicines. While reporting to have gained their knowledge from their professional experience, only a minority of respondents reported knowingly dispensing off-label medicines for pediatric patients. Respondents indicated that manufacturing more appropriate formulations for pediatric patients would reduce such practices in this population. Having concerns regarding the efficacy and safety of off-label medicines used for pediatric patients, respondents felt that the use of off-label medicines would increase the likelihood of adverse drug reactions (ADRs). Finally, respondents felt that such practice of prescribing and dispensing should receive parental consent. Keywords: Dispensing, Hospital, Jordan, Off-Label, Pediatrics, Pharmacist

Assessment of Knowledge, Perception, Experience and Phobia toward Corticosteroids Use among the General Public in the Era of COVID-19: A Multinational Study

Background: Corticosteroids play a significant role in managing the vast majority of inflammatory and immunologic conditions. To date, population-based studies on knowledge and attitudes concerning corticosteroids are scarce. This study aims to comprehensively assess knowledge, perception, experience and phobia toward corticosteroid use among the general population in the era of COVID-19. Methods: A cross-sectional self-administrated questionnaire was used to collect the data from 6 countries. Knowledge and corticophobia scores, descriptive statistics and logistic regression were computed. Results: A total of 2354 participants were enrolled in this study; the majority were females (61.6%) with an average age of 30. Around 61.9% had been infected previously with COVID-19, and about one-third of the participants had experience with corticosteroid use. The mean knowledge score was relatively satisfactory (8.7 ± 4.5 out of 14), and Corticophobia ranked a high score in all countries. Age, female gender, and history of COVID-19 were positively correlated with developing corticophobia. Conclusion: Our study highlights that the general knowledge about steroids was satisfactory. However, the phobia toward its use upon indication is high. Therefore, enhancing awareness and providing essential counseling regarding the rational use of corticosteroids may reduce corticophobia