ABSTRACT
ABSTRACT: This study was conducted to assess the pharmacy students and graduate knowledge and awareness about pharmacovigilance and adverse drug reporting [ADR] system in Karachi, Pakistan
Objectives: This study was designed to identify the trends, perception and approaches of pharmacy students and graduate towards current scenarios of pharmacovigilance and ADR contextual to our setting. Study Design: It was cross sectional, qualitative study. Setting: Pharmacy final year students and fresh graduates of two public and two private sector universities were included in the study. Period: Data was collected between January to August, 2015
Method: Relevant information was collected using questionnaire with 18 open ended and 7 close ended questions. 400 final year participants and 150 fresh graduates were incorporated in this survey. SPSS 20.0 was used to analyze the results and Percent, frequencies and mean scores were calculated for various outcomes
Results: Response rate of final year students and fresh graduates was found [97%, n = 388] and [88%, n= 132] respectively. Students level of awareness about pharmacovigilance was found [54%, n =216] in final year students while little higher rates were observed [78%, n=110] in graduates. Concept of pharmacovigilance gained through pharmacy curriculum was calculated 45% rated by final year students. The pharmacovigilance knowledge mean score was found to be 2.368.5 and 2.886.3 for final year students and fresh graduates respectively. 58% total respondents were aware with relationship between the drug and the ADR
Conclusion: The results of this study demonstrate that pharmacy students of final year in public and private sector universities of Pakistan are aware with some basic knowledge of ADRs and pharmacovigilance, but it is a need of time to incorporate more contents of such aspects in curriculum with some practical exposure that how to report ADRs