Pharmacovigilance Perception and Knowledge Among Pharmacists and Interns in Saudi Arabia

Figures & data

Figure 1 Data cleaning procedure.

Table 1 Descriptive Statistics for Demographic Variables (n=315)

Gender	Frequency (n)	Percentage (%)
Male	130	41.3
Female	185	58.7
Age (Year)
20–25	196	61.9
26–30	64	20.3
31 and above	56	17.8
Education
Intern	81	25.7
Pharmacist	234	74.3
Working experience
Intern	162	51.4
Up to 5 years	100	31.7
6 years and more	53	16.8
Work place
MOH hospital	162	51.4
Other hospital	153	48.6
Nationality
Saudi	299	94.9
Non-Saudi	16	5.1

Table 2 Comparison of Good Knowledge for Different Items Between Interns and Pharmacists in Saudi Arabia (n=315)

Items	Short Names	Intern	Pharmacists
		Response (%)	Response (%)
Pharmacovigilance is the practice of monitoring the effects of medical drugs after they have been licensed for use, especially in order to identify and evaluate previously unreported adverse reactions.	K1	86.4	91.0
Which one of the following regulatory bodies regulates adverse drug reaction reporting in Saudi Arabia?	K2	76.5	80.8
There are differences between adverse drug reactions (ADRs) and adverse drug events (ADEs)	K3	69.1	72.2
I have an idea of how to report ADRs to the relevant authorities in Saudi Arabia	K4	48.1	57.7
I know the minimum information required for the submission of an initial ADRs report	K5	43.2	53.4
I know the different classifications of ADRs	K6	49.4	57.7
Hypersensitivity reactions are related to type B ADRs	K7	30.9	31.6
I know the different types of hypersensitivity reactions	K8	48.1	53.8
Which type of ADR is recommended to be reported?	K9	66.7	72.2
Type A ADRs are uncommon and unpredictable, depending on the known pharmacology of the drug; they are independent of dose and only affect few people	K10	28.4	30.3

Table 3 Comparison of Good Perception for Different Items Between Intern and Pharmacists in Saudi Arabia (n=315)

Items	Short Names	Intern	Pharmacists
		Responses (%)	Responses (%)
Have you ever reported an ADR?	P1	22.2	32.1
I believe that the topic of pharmacovigilance is well covered in my pharmacy school curriculum	P2	29.6	35.9
I think ADRs reporting is important	P3	86.4	87.2
I believe that I have acquired enough knowledge during my undergraduate study to enable me to report ADRs	P4	30.9	35.5
With my present knowledge, I am very well prepared to report any ADRs that I face in my future practice	P5	39.5	49.6
I believe that I have acquired enough knowledge during my internship to enable me to report ADRs	P6	38.3	41.0
Majority of ADRs reports should come from pharmacists	P7	56.8	50.0
ADRs reporting should be made mandatory for all pharmacists	P8	74.1	64.5
I believe that ADRs caused by herbal medicines should be reported	P9	85.2	81.6
I must advise any patient to immediately report any ADR	P10	80.2	78.6
I believe serious and unexpected reactions that are not fatal or life-threatening during clinical trials must not be reported	P11	14.8	16.2

Table 4 Comparison of Knowledge and Perception Between Intern and Pharmacists About Pharmacovigilance in Different Health-Care Settings, Saudi Arabia

Attribute	Group (n)	Mean Score (SD)	Mean Difference (95% CI)	p-value*
Knowledge	Intern (81)	31.22 (6.01)	1.44 (0.046, 2.84)	0.043
	Pharmacists (234)	32.67 (5.34)
Perception	Intern (81)	35.49 (5.72)	0.61 (−0.91, 2.11)	0.431
	Pharmacists (234)	36.10 (6.03)

Note: *Independent sample t-test.