Faculty of Pharmacy, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Cawangan Selangor, Kampus Puncak Alam, Puncak Alam 42300, Malaysia.
Non-Destructive Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Research Centre, Smart Manufacturing Research Institute, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Cawangan Selangor, Kampus Puncak Alam, Puncak Alam 42300, Malaysia.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Sep 2;19(17):10994. doi: 10.3390/ijerph191710994.
Herbal and dietary supplements (HDSs) are frequently obtained from community pharmacies, but community pharmacists (CPs) have been underutilized for information regarding them. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of, factors behind, and reasons for consultation with CPs among HDS consumers in Malaysia. A cross-sectional study using an online survey was conducted among conveniently sampled individuals in Malaysia. Reasons for consultation or non-consultation with CPs about HDSs were sought from the respondents. A logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine the predictors of consultation with CPs. Overall, 40.3% (239/593) of participants consulted CPs about the HDSs that they purchased. The participants were predominantly unmarried (362/588, 61.6%) and belonged to the 18-29 age group (332/593, 56%). The multivariate analysis showed that a suburban residential setting was the only significant predictor for consultation with CPs (adjusted odds ratio = 0.390, 95% CI = 0.260-0.583). Respondents who consulted CPs generally agreed that the CPs were the right people to consult on HDSs (mean = 4.37, SD = 0.73). However, their discussion with CPs regarding HDSs mostly revolved around the benefits and directions for use, but little on the potential risks. Meanwhile, most respondents who did not consult CPs agreed that they had never thought of consulting CPs about their HDS use (mean = 3.45, SD = 1.02). The majority of them referred to the Internet (61.3%, 217/354) and social media (59.9%, 212/354) for information about HDSs. The findings from this study show that more efforts are warranted in encouraging consumers to consult CPs about their HDS use and to enhance their awareness of the roles of CPs in ensuring the safe use of HDSs.
草药和膳食补充剂（HDS）经常从社区药店购买，但社区药剂师（CPs）在有关这些产品的信息方面的利用率一直较低。本研究旨在确定马来西亚 HDS 消费者中寻求 CPs 咨询的普遍性、背后的原因和原因。使用在线调查对马来西亚的方便抽样个体进行了横断面研究。从受访者那里寻求了与 CPs 咨询或不咨询 HDS 的原因。进行逻辑回归分析以确定与 CPs 咨询的预测因素。总体而言，593 名参与者中有 40.3%（239/593）就他们购买的 HDS 咨询了 CPs。参与者主要是未婚（588 人中的 362 人，占 61.6%），年龄在 18-29 岁之间（593 人中的 332 人，占 56%）。多变量分析显示，郊区居住环境是与 CPs 咨询的唯一重要预测因素（调整后的优势比=0.390，95%置信区间=0.260-0.583）。咨询 CPs 的受访者普遍认为 CPs 是咨询 HDS 的合适人选（平均=4.37，标准差=0.73）。然而，他们与 CPs 讨论 HDS 主要围绕益处和使用方向，但很少涉及潜在风险。同时，大多数没有咨询 CPs 的受访者也同意，他们从未想过就 HDS 使用咨询 CPs（平均=3.45，标准差=1.02）。他们大多数参考互联网（61.3%，217/354）和社交媒体（59.9%，212/354）获取 HDS 信息。这项研究的结果表明，需要加大力度鼓励消费者就其 HDS 使用咨询 CPs，并提高他们对 CPs 在确保 HDS 安全使用方面的作用的认识。
