Ethiopian health care professionals’ knowledge, attitude, and interests toward pharmacogenomics

Abstract

BackgroundPharmacogenomics is a field of science which studies the impact of inheritance on individual variation in medication therapy response.AimWe assessed healthcare professionals’ knowledge, attitude, and interest toward pharmacogenomics.MethodsA cross-sectional survey was conducted using a 32-item questionnaire among physicians, nurses, and pharmacists who were working at the University of Gondar Referral and Teaching Hospital in northwest Ethiopia. Descriptive statistics was applied, and the categorical variables were summarized as frequency and percentages. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) test was performed to compare mean scores among health professionals. A p-value of <0.05 was considered as statistically significant.ResultsOf 292 health professionals who responded, the majority were male (60%) and the mean age of study participants was 27.00 (±4.85 SD) years. The mean knowledge scores of all participants, pharmacists, physicians, and nurses were 2.343±1.109, 2.671±1.059, 2.375±1.093, and 2.173±1.110, respectively. Based on the ANOVA test, a statistically significant difference was noted in mean knowledge score between pharmacists and nurses (p=0.002). More than two-thirds (67.33%) of nurses, 42.86% of pharmacists, and 40.27% of physicians who participated did not know that genetic variations can account for as much as 95% of the variability in drug disposition and effects. The ability to accurately apply their knowledge to drug therapy selection, dosing, or monitoring parameter was reported by 35.3% of the participants. More than two-thirds (69.2%) of participants thought that pharmacogenomic testing will allow the identification of the right drug with less side effects. Most of the participants (83.2%) also requested to have training on pharmacogenomics.ConclusionParticipants showed limited knowledge, but they had positive attitude toward pharmacogenomics. Educational programs focusing on pharmacogenomic testing and its clinical application need to be emphasized.

Knowledge, attitude, future expectations and perceived barriers of medical students and physicians regarding pharmacogenomics in Jordan

“…For instance, Elewa et al showed in 2015 a low mean awareness score among Qatari doctors and pharmacists about PG. 29 Furthermore, Abdela et al reported in 2017 a generally low knowledge about PG amongEthiopian healthcare providers 33. Similar results were additionally obtained from India37 and Kuwait 34.…”

“…The questionnaire was adapted from several instruments used elsewhere considering the aim of the current study. [29][30][31][32][33][34] Face and content va-…”

Genomics and Pharmacogenomics Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Pharmacists Working in United Arab Emirates: Findings from Focus Group Discussions—A Qualitative Study

“…Several studies evaluated the knowledge and attitude of pharmacists toward genomics and pharmacogenomics world-wide and our study is the first to do so in the UAE. Despite the geographical spaces, pharmacists shared similar attitudes and concerns toward pharmacogenomics [ 8 , 9 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 ]. In our sample, the knowledge of pharmacists who worked or studied outside the UAE did not differ from those who worked or studied in the UAE.…”

Knowledge and Attitudes of Medical and Health Science Students in the United Arab Emirates toward Genomic Medicine and Pharmacogenomics: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Future advances in genomic medicine and PGX will require health professionals to be equipped with the knowledge and tools in order to fully apply and implement PGX in clinical practice as best as possible [ 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 ]. Despite the emphasis and evidence on the importance of genomic medicine and PGX in clinical practice, many healthcare professionals express a lack of confidence in the implementation of PGX in practice [ 7 , 13 ]. This is fairly attributed to lack of education, a widely highlighted barrier, which can lead to knowledge gaps and difficulty in interpreting and communicating PGX results [ 13 ].…”

“…Despite the emphasis and evidence on the importance of genomic medicine and PGX in clinical practice, many healthcare professionals express a lack of confidence in the implementation of PGX in practice [ 7 , 13 ]. This is fairly attributed to lack of education, a widely highlighted barrier, which can lead to knowledge gaps and difficulty in interpreting and communicating PGX results [ 13 ]. Medical and health science students represent future health professionals, and their perceptions are essential to increasing awareness on personalized medicine and PGX [ 1 , 11 , 12 , 13 ].…”