Knowledge, attitudes and practice regarding pharmacovigilance and adverse drug reaction reporting among physicians and pharmacists in Egypt: a step toward personalized medicine implementation

Abstract

Aim: To assess the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of the healthcare professionals working at Children's Cancer Hospital Egypt regarding pharmacovigilance (PV) and adverse drug reaction (ADR) reporting, in addition to the ADR reporting barriers. Materials & methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at Children's Cancer Hospital Egypt from July to September 2021 using a validated questionnaire. Results: About 37 physicians (20.3%) and 145 pharmacists (79.7%) responded to the survey. Overall, the knowledge (median: 40%) and practice (median: 50%) of PV and the reporting of ADRs were low; however, attitudes were mostly positive. The main barrier to reporting ADRs was Thedifficulty ofdetermining whether or not ADRs occurred (42.3%). Conclusion: Understanding of PV and ADR reporting could improve the huge gap between ADRs experienced and ADRs reported. In order to be able to assess the impact of personalized medicine implementation, adequate ADR reporting should be well established.