Physicians’ Attitudes and Ethical Obligations to Pharmacogenetic Testing

Figures & data

Table 1 Percentage Distribution of Selected Demographic Variables of Prescribers in the Sample

Variables	Frequency (%)
Gender
Male	85 (42.5)
Female	115 (57.5)
Practice Setting
Practice only in KAUH hospital	140 (70.0)
Practice in KAUH and Private Clinics	40 (20.0)
Practice in KAUH and Academic Medical Centers	20 (10.0)
Medical Specialty
Internal Medicine	95 (47.5)
Family Medicine	54 (27.0)
General Surgery	20 (10.0)
Pediatrics	15 (7.5)
Others	16 (8.0)
Duration of practice (years)
1–5	85 (42.5)
6–10	55 (27.5)
11–15	22 (11.0)
More than 16	38 (19.0)

Table 2 Mean and Standard Deviations of Physicians’ Attitudes Towards the Use of PGt Testing

Item	Mean	Stand. Deviation	Rank	Degree
I believe that pharmacogenetic testing will help to decrease the number of adverse drug events	4.14	0.84	1	High
I am concerned about the effect of the test results on my patients’ eligibility for private health insurance	4.01	0.98	2	High
I am concerned about the effect of the test results on my patients’ employment opportunities	3.97	0.88	3	High
I think that pharmacogenetic testing may prevent prescribing a wrong medicine	3.95	0.98	4	High
I am concerned that unauthorized personnel may gain access to the results of that test	3.75	0.93	5	High
Pharmacogenetic testing can potentially optimize the safety and efficacy of medication better than the current traditional way of prescribing drugs.	3.69	0.87	6	High
Pharmacogenetic testing will help in reducing the cost of developing new drugs	3.57	1.07	7	Medium
Pharmacogenetic testing is compatible with the current practice of prescribing and mentoring medications	3.55	0.95	8	Medium
I will be reluctant to offer pharmacogenetic testing until I see it working for patients	3.51	1.09	9	Medium
I would like to try pharmacogenetic testing as soon as it becomes available	3.50	0.92	10	Medium
Pharmacogenetic testing is crucial in cases with non-response or potential life-threatening drug reactions	3.46	0.99	11	Medium
PGt testing is difficult to deal with in the current clinical practice compared to other routine lab tests	3.40	1.04	12	Medium

Table 3 Frequency Distribution of Physicians’ Responses to the Need of Informed Consent

Circumstances	Answer “Not Required”
	Frequency (%)
If testing offers lower risks/higher benefits	90 (56.3)
If testing may reveal secondary information	65 (40.6)
If testing may not reveal secondary information	63 (39.4)
When there is a potential risk of discrimination or stigmatization for some infectious diseases like tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS	89 (55.6)

Table 4 Frequency Distribution of Physicians’ Responses Regarding Disclosure of Ancillary Information

Statement	Answer “Yes”
	Frequency (%)
I will take “reasonable steps” to directly warn at-risk family members.	72 (45.0)
I will directly inform at-risk family as I believe that “no essential difference” between the type of genetic diseases and the threat of infectious diseases.	19 (11.9)
I will communicate with my patients undergoing testing to emphasize the importance of sharing this information with family members, so that they may also benefit.	59 (36.9)
I will protect the framework of the physician-patient relationship by not disclosing my patient’s information to family	9 (5.6)