Department of Family Medicine, Ministry of Health, Muscat, Oman.
Department of Family Medicine, Oman Medical Specialty Board, Muscat, Oman.
Sultan Qaboos Univ Med J. 2021 May;21(2):e289-e296. doi: 10.18295/squmj.2021.21.02.019. Epub 2021 Jun 21.
This study aimed to assess parental knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding antibiotic use for children with upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs).
A multi-centre cross-sectional study was conducted from September 2018 to April 2019 at 15 randomly selected primary health centres in Muscat, Oman. A total of 384 parents with children under 12 years old were recruited. A validated questionnaire was utilised to determine knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding antibiotic use for children with URTIs.
All 384 parents participated in the study (response rate: 100%). Almost half of the participants (n = 173; 45.1%) agreed that antibiotics were the first and best treatment for URTIs in children, with 184 parents (47.9%) reporting that influenza symptoms in children improved more rapidly after the administration of antibiotics and 203 (52.9%) believing that antibiotics prevented complications. The majority (n = 219; 57.0%) of parents never gave their children antibiotics without a prescription, and 291 (75.8%) never used leftover antibiotics. Most participants (n = 233; 60.7%) stated that it was the doctor's decision to prescribe antibiotics, 192 (50.0%) had never asked a physician to prescribe antibiotics for their child and 256 (66.7%) had never changed doctors because they did not prescribe antibiotics.
This study found that parents had confidence in their healthcare providers; however, it also showed the extent of their lack of knowledge regarding the use of antibiotics for children with URTIs. There is a need for both public- and healthcare professional-oriented educational initiatives to promote rational antibiotic usage in Oman.
本研究旨在评估父母对儿童上呼吸道感染(URTI)抗生素使用的知识、态度和实践情况。
本研究为 2018 年 9 月至 2019 年 4 月在阿曼马斯喀特随机选择的 15 家初级保健中心开展的一项多中心横断面研究。共招募了 384 名 12 岁以下儿童的父母。采用经验证的问卷来确定父母对儿童 URTI 抗生素使用的知识、态度和实践情况。
所有 384 名父母均参与了研究(应答率:100%)。近一半的参与者(n=173;45.1%)认为抗生素是儿童 URTI 的首选和最佳治疗方法,184 名父母(47.9%)报告称儿童流感症状在使用抗生素后更快改善,203 名(52.9%)认为抗生素可预防并发症。大多数父母(n=219;57.0%)在没有处方的情况下从不自行给孩子使用抗生素,291 名(75.8%)从不使用剩余抗生素。大多数参与者(n=233;60.7%)表示开处方是医生的决定,192 名(50.0%)从未要求医生为孩子开抗生素,256 名(66.7%)从未因为医生不开抗生素而更换医生。
本研究发现,父母对医疗服务提供者有信心;然而,研究也表明他们对儿童 URTI 抗生素使用缺乏了解的程度。在阿曼,需要开展面向公众和医疗保健专业人员的教育计划,以促进合理使用抗生素。