Department of Clinical and Hospital Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, Taibah University, P. O. Box 30051, Madinah, 41477, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
BMC Health Serv Res. 2022 Jan 29;22(1):123. doi: 10.1186/s12913-022-07553-x.
Recent studies have reflected increased global concern regarding the possible acceleration of bacterial resistance secondary to the reported overuse and misuse of antibiotics during the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the nonprescribed sale of antibiotics by community pharmacies in Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 outbreak and the pharmacists' skills in triaging COVID-19 suspects.
Herein, 120 pharmacies were randomly selected and surveyed by simulated clients who presented gradual demands to convince the encountered pharmacists to agree to the over-the-counter sale of antibiotics. The pharmacists' responses and counseling skills were documented in addition to their effectiveness in triaging suspected COVID-19 cases.
Nineteen pharmacists (15.8%) were convinced to sell nonprescribed antibiotics after various levels of demand by clients. Moreover, twenty pharmacists (16.7%), who refused to sell nonprescribed antibiotics, referred the clients to clinics where they could easily obtain prescriptions, or to other pharmacies that violate the system. In addition, 29 pharmacists (24.2%) were not concerned about possible COVID-19 suspects, and 47-66 (39.2-55%) of them demonstrated different responses and recommendations. Moreover, 12 pharmacists of the 19 who violated the law did not offer any counseling regarding the use of the antibiotics.
The nonprescribed sale of antibiotics is still prevalent and may have increased during the COVID-19 outbreak in Saudi Arabia, thereby increasing the risk of accelerated bacterial resistance. The pharmacists' skills in triaging COVID-19 suspects and patient education and counseling were below expectations. Further follow-up studies are highly recommended.
最近的研究反映出，由于在 COVID-19 大流行期间报告的抗生素过度使用和滥用，人们越来越担心细菌耐药性可能会加速。因此，本研究旨在调查沙特阿拉伯社区药房在 COVID-19 爆发期间非处方销售抗生素的情况，以及药剂师在分诊 COVID-19 疑似病例方面的技能。
在此，通过模拟客户对 120 家随机选择的药店进行调查，模拟客户逐渐提出要求，以说服遇到的药剂师同意非处方销售抗生素。记录了药剂师的反应和咨询技巧，以及他们在分诊 COVID-19 疑似病例方面的有效性。
在客户提出不同程度的需求后，有 19 名药剂师（15.8%）被说服出售非处方抗生素。此外，有 20 名药剂师（16.7%）拒绝出售非处方抗生素，他们将客户转介到可以轻松获得处方的诊所，或转介到其他违反系统的药店。此外，有 29 名药剂师（24.2%）对可能的 COVID-19 疑似病例不感兴趣，其中 47-66 名（39.2-55%）的药剂师表现出不同的反应和建议。此外，违反法律的 19 名药剂师中的 12 名没有提供任何关于抗生素使用的咨询。
在沙特阿拉伯 COVID-19 爆发期间，非处方销售抗生素仍然很普遍，并且可能有所增加，从而增加了细菌耐药性加速的风险。药剂师在分诊 COVID-19 疑似病例以及患者教育和咨询方面的技能低于预期。强烈建议进行进一步的后续研究。
