descriptive study of knowledge of Pharmacovigilance and adverse drug reactions among second professional undergraduate medical students in a teaching hospital.

ABSTRACT

Background: Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are adverse consequences of drug therapy being one of the leading causes of morbidity and represent a substantial burden of healthcare resources. Though Pharmacovigilance program was started in India in 1982, the awareness about it is much lower and underreporting of ADRs is a common problem with only 6-10% of all ADRs being reported. The objective of this study was to analyze the baseline knowledge of awareness regarding the ADRs and Pharmacovigilance activity in the undergraduate medical students who are future doctors of society so as to foster a culture of reporting ADRs, to fulfill various it is lacunaes and make adjustments of medical student’s curriculum in order to improve practice of reporting. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among second professional medical students in July 2015 to assess the knowledge of ADRs and Pharmacovigilance activities using a questionnaire to collect the information. Part “A” consisted of choosing the most appropriate answer and Part “B” included replying with “Yes” or “No.” Data were expressed as percentage proportions. Results: Out of the total of 150 enrolled students, 134 filled and returned the questionnaire with students having a mediocre knowledge about Pharmacovigilance and majority of them (94%) vouching that reporting of ADRs should be mandatory as it is going to benefit patients (99.2%). Conclusions: Our study revealed that there are gaps between knowledge regarding ADRs and Pharmacovigilance that needs to be addressed on priority basis for the success of the Pharmacovigilance program and better clinical management of patients in general.