A study on assessment of knowledge about adverse drug reactions

Adverse drug reaction (ADR) monitoring activity is in infancy in India. This study was conducted to de termine the level of awareness of Health Care Professionals (HC P) about ADR reporting and extent of their involvem ent in pharmacovigilance activities. A questionnaire conta ining 19 questions was distributed to the teaching faculties, physicians, nurses and students of the study settin g. The response rate of faculties, physicians, nurs es and students for the questionnaire in phase-I were found to be 6 6.67, 40, 66.67 and 73.33 percent respectively. But the response rates were remarkably increased in the phase-II whe n compared with phase-I study viz 100 percent from faculties and students, 93.33 percent from physicians and 86. 67 from nurses. Almost all the participants said th at ADR monitoring was done in their institution. Majority of the participants said that ADR should be reporte d if it causes both inconvenience and death to the patients. In ou r study, Physician (93%) know the objectives of ADR s monitoring very well in phase-II, when compared with phase ‐I study (75%) which is followed by faculties (83), nu rses (77%) and students (73%). Spontaneous reporting of ADRs dby all faculties, 93 percent physician, 80 p ercent students and 77 percent nurses in phase II study. A ll participants in the phase-II survey know any one method to monitor ADRs but in phase-I, 10 percent nurses and 9 percent students do not know about any one method of monitoring ADRs. Lack of knowledge about ADR report ing center is the mainstay in under-reporting or no nreporting of observed ADRs noted by only 6.67 perce nt of faculties, 19.23 percent nurses and 10 percen t students. The reasons for underreporting was very much reduce d in phase-II than in phase-I.