Pharmacists’ attitude, self‐reported knowledge and practice of dosage adjustment among chronic kidney disease patients in Malaysia

Abstract

AbstractDrug‐related issues, such as inappropriate drug dosing, are pervasive patient issues that are particularly common among chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. Pharmacists have the expertise to play an important role in avoiding such problems. The aim of the present study was to explore pharmacists’ self‐perceived knowledge, attitude and practice towards dosage adjustment among CKD patients. A cross‐sectional, Web‐based, self‐administered survey was conducted among 1594 registered pharmacists in Malaysia. Participants were surveyed regarding their perceived knowledge, attitude and implementation of drug dosage adjustment based on renal function among CKD patients in their practice. The study was completed by 234 pharmacists (14.7%). More than four‐fifths of respondents (n = 199) reported that they are practicing dosage adjustment. The median self‐perceived knowledge score was 27.0 (of a total of 45). Pharmacists younger than 29 years of age and those practicing in hospitals had higher knowledge of drug dosage adjustments. Female pharmacists were more likely to express interest in being involved in the identification, monitoring and resolution of drug therapy problems for CKD patients (p = 0.02). The two most common obstacles reported by pharmacists who did not practice dosage adjustment were a lack of information regarding a patient's renal function status (76%) and medical history (74%). Further training should be given to pharmacists to improve knowledge and awareness. An alert card could be implemented to record a patient's renal function to improve communication between hospitals and primary care settings.