PurposeTo evaluate the association between spontaneous reporting (SR) and the knowledge, attitude, and needs of community pharmacists (CPs), using a questionnaire following a conceptual model known as the mixed model of knowledge-attitude-practices and the satisfaction of needs.MethodsSelf-administered questionnaires were used with a nationwide convenience sample of CPs between September 1, 2014 and November 25, 2014 in Korea. The association between SR and the predictive factors was evaluated using multivariate logistic regression analysis.ResultsIn total, 1,001 questionnaires were analyzed. The mean age of the respondents and the number of years spent in community pharmacy practice were 45.6 years and 15.3 years, respectively. CPs with experience of SR was 29.4%. Being older than 60 (ORadj, 0.16; 95% CI, 0.06–0.42), having prior experience with adverse drug reactions (ADR) (ORadj, 6.46; 95% CI, 2.46–16.98), having higher specific knowledge of SR (ORadj, 3.58; 95% CI, 1.96–6.56), and having less concern about the obstacles to SR (ORadj, 0.36; 95% CI, 0.23–0.57) were significant contributing factors to SR. The main obstacles to SR included perception of ADRs as ‘not serious ADR’ (77.9%), ‘already well known ADR’ (81.5%), and ‘uncertain about causality’ (73.3%). CPs without reporting experience had greater concerns related to the reporting method and the liability of the pharmacy than those with reporting experience (p<0.05).ConclusionsFindings from our study showed around one in three CPs had ADR reporting experience in Korea, while 87.1% had prior experience with ADR cases. The knowledge of SR, prior experience of ADR, and less concern about the obstacles to SR were contributing factors for reporting levels.

Background Spontaneous reporting (SR) of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) from patients can be considered as a valuable activity providing both objective and subjective data. However, improving the rate of under-reporting has been a major challenge to ensure successful operation of the SR system. This study aimed to assess knowledge, attitude, and intent to report ADRs and explore the factors contributing to consumers’ reporting intent in South Korea. Methods Self-administered questionnaire was collected from a sex-, age-, and regionally stratified nationwide convenience sample of consumers using a commercial panel in December 2018. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to explore the factors contributing to the intent to report ADRs by consumers. Results A total of 1000 respondents were enrolled in the survey; 50.9% were males and the mean age was 44.4 (standard deviation, 13.3) years. While less than 15% of the respondents were aware of the SR system and even fewer (3.4%) had actual experience of SR, however, 59.2% expressed their intent to report ADRs. The positive attitude (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 3.972, p < 0.001), awareness of the SR system (aOR 2.102, p < 0.01), self-efficacy for SR (aOR 1.956, p < 0.001), and experiences related to ADR counselling with healthcare professionals (OR 2.318, p < 0.001) are the significant factors contributing to reporting intent. Conclusions Findings of this study highlight the need for increasing the awareness of the SR system among consumers and empowering them to report ADRs by themselves, which would ultimately improve the drug-safety environment.

BackgroundIn South Korea, community pharmacy experiential practice (CPEP) is very important because most pharmacists (71.8%) work in community pharmacies, which also employ the majority of students after graduation. The present study investigated student responses to the current CPEP status, suggestions for improvement, and advancement in their competency after practice based on evaluation of Community Pharmacy Experiential Practice Model (CPEPM) outcomes.MethodsA nationwide cross-sectional, self-administered online survey was conducted in 2017 for the sixth-year pharmacy students who completed CPEP, using 50 item questionnaire. The answers were evaluated using the 4-point Likert scale, used a scoring system from 1 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree). Responses of 1 and 2 were considered negative, and 3 and 4 were considered positive. To identify factors affecting CPEPM outcomes, multivariate linear regression analysis was performed.ResultsInitially, 1138 students participated in the survey. Of these, responses from 492 students were excluded due to missing data and eventually, data from 646 students were included in the analysis. In total, 95% of students responded in the affirmative that practical training influenced their future career decision. In addition, 78.5% of students were satisfied with the training. Further, they responded that their ability improved based on CPEPM outcomes. The most positive capability change was in the subdomain “personal and professional development”, followed by “inter professional collaboration”.ConclusionsStudents responded with the higher rating for satisfaction factor, who regarded CPEP as helpful in future career decision making, and those who wanted to practice elective Advanced Pharmacy Practice Education at a community pharmacy had a positive CPEPM outcome, while age was found to be a negative factor in terms of the regression analysis. These are valuable findings as they represent the current student perception of CPEP nationwide. They provide a basis to improve the quality of CPEP-based education not only in Korea, but in other countries as well.

Background: The prevalence of drug-induced parkinsonism (DIP) has been reported with the use of trimetazidine (TMZ), an antianginal medication available in Asian and European countries. Very few studies have evaluated the association between DIP and TMZ use, and studies using population-based data from national databases are lacking. Objectives: To investigate the association between DIP and use of TMZ in patients with angina using data from a national healthcare claims database and to determine the predictive factors of DIP in TMZ use. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on patients aged 40 years or more diagnosed with angina, using the Korean National Healthcare claims 2014 database. The association between TMZ use and DIP was evaluated using multivariate logistic regression analysis, adjusting for confounders, including age; sex; insurance type; comorbidities; and concurrent medications known to be commonly associated with DIP, such as typical and atypical antipsychotics. Results: Of the patients included in the study, 19% were prescribed TMZ. In addition, 2.5% of TMZ users had preexisting extrapyramidal and movement disorders. TMZ use was found to be a significant predictor of a new diagnosis of parkinsonism (adjusted OR [aOR] 1.39; 95% CI 1.06–1.81; p = 0.016). Age ≥65 years (aOR 2.07; 95% CI 1.13– 3.74; p = 0.017) and stroke as comorbid disease (aOR 3.23; 95% CI 1.87–5.61; p < 0.001) were also significantly associated with a new diagnosis of parkinsonism in TMZ users. Conclusions: Treatment with TMZ was a statistically significant predictor of a new diagnosis of parkinsonism. Efforts should focus on close monitoring of, and education on, TMZ use in relation to DIP in all patients who are prescribed TMZ, including those with preexisting extrapyramidal and movement disorders.

This study aimed to determine the level of pharmacovigilance (PV) education in pharmacy programmes and to evaluate the predictive factors for the intent to report adverse drug reactions (ADRs) by pharmacy students in South Korea. Self‐administered questionnaires were collected from a regionally stratified nationwide convenience sample of pharmacy students in September 2017. The association between students' intent to report ADRs and their knowledge and attitude was evaluated by using multivariate logistic regression analysis. In total, 303 pharmacy students participated in the survey; the average age of students was 26.7 (standard deviation 2.9) years and 40.6% were males. Eighty‐eight students (29%) marked the degree of their intent as “strongly high.” Increased knowledge of ADR reporting methods and positive attitude towards the need for ADR reporting were significant predictors of the intent to report ADRs. Further, witnessing reporting by the preceptor (adjusted odds ratio, 2.37; 95% confidence interval, 1.26‐4.46; P < 0.01) was significantly correlated with the knowledge on and attitude towards ADR reporting of pharmacy students. The findings of our study indicated the need for improvements in PV curriculum, such as educational content focused on ADR reporting methods and demonstration of a preceptor's reporting in pharmacy practice experiential rotation, within Korean college of pharmacy curriculum.