Analysis · Health
When Suspected Drug Reactions Never Become Safety Reports
By AWEI · AI-compiled · Published · Analysis prepared · 1 source · doi.org
Nine pharmacists said they had observed adverse drug reactions in their practice. None had reported them. That gap between noticing possible harm and recording it was a striking finding in a 2017 study by Yaser Mohammed Al-Worafi and colleagues in Sana’a, Yemen.
The researchers conducted a cross-sectional questionnaire survey, selecting 289 community pharmacies at random. Of 428 pharmacists and pharmacy technicians contacted, 179 completed the questionnaire: 21 pharmacists and 158 technicians. Participants answered questions about drug safety monitoring, reporting experience, attitudes and perceived barriers. This was a snapshot of knowledge and self-reported practice, not an experiment testing how to improve reporting.
Knowing that reporting was a professional responsibility did not necessarily mean knowing how to do it. All 21 pharmacists correctly identified who should report adverse drug reactions, but only five correctly described the reporting procedure. Among technicians, only two answered the procedure question correctly. Average knowledge scores were 3.33 out of 10 for pharmacists and 0.15 for technicians.
The barriers were also practical. Among technicians, 146 of 158 said reporting forms were unavailable, and the same number said they did not know where reports should be sent. Better knowledge was associated with a more positive attitude toward reporting, but the survey cannot establish that knowledge caused those attitudes or would change reporting behavior.
The findings have clear limits. Only 41.8% of those contacted participated, so respondents may differ from nonrespondents. The pharmacist group was small, almost all participants were men, and the study covered one city. Questionnaire answers cannot establish the true frequency of drug reactions or independently verify reporting behavior.
The useful lesson is to examine the steps between recognizing a suspected reaction and submitting a report. Training, accessible forms and clearer procedures were proposed approaches, but this study did not test whether they increased reporting or improved patient safety.
Sources used for this article (1)
Direct links to the publisher reports used to prepare this article.
- Source 1
- Pharmacovigilance and adverse drug reaction reporting: a perspective of community pharmacists and pharmacy technicians in Sana’a, Yemen Yaser Mohammed Al‐Worafi, Yaman Walid Kassab, Wafa Mohammed Alseragi …
