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Assessment of patients’ knowledge and practices regarding their medication use and risks in Lebanon

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Abstract

Background Patients’ knowledge of their medications play a pivotal role in their disease management. Objective Assess the knowledge and practices of Lebanese outpatients regarding their own medication use and risks. Setting Four hundred and sixty community pharmacies across Lebanon. Method It was a cross-sectional study performed from March through May 2016 among Lebanese outpatients, using a self-administered questionnaire. Descriptive statistics were used to calculate all participants’ responses. The association between categorical variables were evaluated using Pearson χ2 test or Fisher’s exact test. Binary logistic regressions were performed to identify factors associated with medication patients’ knowledge and interest. Main outcome measure Ability of the patients to identify own medications’ elements: name, strength, dosage regimen, indication, and adverse drug reactions. Results Our study comprised 921 patients, with around 16% taking ≥5 medications/day. Around 56% of our patients showed sub-optimal medication knowledge. Patients’ higher educational level, number of chronic diseases, and patient physician interaction were associated with higher medication knowledge. Many patients admitted not discussing their medications each time they visit their physicians (38.7%); not reading the leaflet of each medication they take (61.2%); and not regularly asking their pharmacist about the potential interactions of OTC drugs with prescribed medications (53.9%). Conclusion This study showed suboptimal medication-related knowledge, and suboptimal patient’s interactions with primary care givers. Our findings serve as a platform for healthcare providers to understand patients’ needs and educate them about medication use and risks.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank all the inspectors of the OPL for their help in passing the surveys and data entry. We would also like to thank all the members of the OPL Medication Safety Subcommittee, namely: Aline Hajj, Hadi Sherri, Hayat Azouri, Hind Hajj, Maryam Ghorayeb, Marwan Akel, Nouhad Sarkis, and Patricia Shuhaiber.

Funding

No sources of funding were used to assist in the preparation of this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pharmacy Practice, School of Pharmacy, Lebanese American University, P.O. Box 36, Byblos, Lebanon

    Elsy Ramia

  2. Department of Pharmacy, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Riad El Solh, P.O. Box 11-236, Beirut, 1107-2020, Lebanon

    Rony M. Zeenny

  3. Psychiatric Hospital of the Cross, Jal Eddib, Lebanon

    Souheil Hallit

  4. School of Pharmacy, Saint-Joseph University, Beirut, Lebanon

    Souheil Hallit

  5. School of Pharmacy, Lebanese University, Hadath, Beirut, Lebanon

    Souheil Hallit

  6. Faculty of Medicine, Universite Saint-Esprit Kaslik, Kaslik, Lebanon

    Souheil Hallit

  7. Faculty of Medicine, Lebanese University, Beirut, Lebanon

    Pascale Salameh

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  1. Elsy Ramia
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on behalf of the Order of Pharmacists Scientific Committee – Medication Safety Subcommittee

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Correspondence to Elsy Ramia.

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Ramia, E., Zeenny, R.M., Hallit, S. et al. Assessment of patients’ knowledge and practices regarding their medication use and risks in Lebanon. Int J Clin Pharm 39, 1084–1094 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11096-017-0517-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11096-017-0517-4

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