PRS56 - Assessment Of Physicians' Knowledge And Perceptions Towards Medicine Quality And Prices In Kabul, Afghanistan

Abstract

The current study is aimed to assess the knowledge and perceptions of physicians towards medicine quality and prices in Kabul City. In this cross-sectional descriptive survey, a total of 400 physicians were approached to be part of the survey and 347 consented to participate (response rate of 86.7%). In the survey, 36.6% of physicians felt that the quality of imported medicine is good, and 50.8% often felt that medicines given by public hospitals are of high quality. However 40.6% disagreed that the Afghan Drug Regulatory Authority controls quality of medicine registered in the country. Overall, 85.6% of respondents felt that the government should adopt health policies to control the medicine prices and expenditures, and 76.3% reported that higher medicine costs negatively impacts patient outcomes. Only 45% reported that doctors have poor understandings on medicine prices, and 84.5% reported that the medicine prices both in the government and private should be made public. Among the respondents, 26.3% felt that medicine prices are affordable to their patients. A high proportion of the respondents (85.2%) agreed that prescription medicine prices must be regulated by the government since 70.3% of physicians reported that medicine prices are high in private hospitals. About 60.5% of the physicians felt that medicine prices influence their prescribing decision, and 65.8% agreed that the patient’s income influences their prescribing decisions. Results suggest that physicians must be cost-conscious and alert in their prescriptions and do not undermine the cost of medication. As a conclusion, the Afghan Drug Regulatory Authority should control the medicine prices and quality on a regular basis in the market, which will act as leverage for sustainable and effective treatment and access to essential medicines. Further, the study suggests that there is substantial room for improvement in the knowledge of physicians about medicine quality and prescription cost.