Impact of an educational intervention on knowledge and attitude regarding pharmacovigilance among health professionals working on cancer hospital attached to a regional pharmacovigilance center

Abstract

Aims: The main aim of the study was to assess the impact of a pharmacovigilance education intervention on the knowledge and attitude of healthcare professionals (HCPs) attached to a regional pharmacovigilance center in an oncology based hospital of Nepal. Methods: Knowledge and attitude were studied before and immediately after the educational intervention among 89 HCPs working in a different department at an oncology based hospital of Nepal. A pretested questionnaire having twelve and nine statements for assessing knowledge and attitude were used. Responses were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The knowledge and attitude scores before and after educational intervention were analyzed with Wilcoxon rank-sum test, using SPSS version 21.0.Results: The knowledge score was significantly increased from [mean ± S.D (Ranges)] [6.90 ± 2.527 (1-12)] to [11.36±1.189 (6-12)] after an intervention. The attitude score was also significantly increased from [5.56±1.616 (4-10)] to a [6.97±1.793 (4-12)] after an intervention. Twenty-one (23.6%) of participants responded that they lacked the time to report adverse drug reactions (ADR), while 12 (13.5 %) of the participants replied that there was no remuneration for reporting ADR. Around 24 % of them suggested for frequent pharmacovigilance awareness programs via Continuing Medical Education or workshop for improvement of pharmacovigilance.Conclusion: The preliminary finds of this study showed that knowledge and attitude scores were increased following an educational intervention. It also suggests that training on pharmacovigilance and ADR tends to have a positive impact on knowledge and attitude among nurses and pharmacists working at an oncology based hospital of Nepal.