The practice and knowledge among community pharmacists about dispensing antibiotics in Egypt; a cross-sectional study
Salah, A., Aboelyazed, A., Waseem, A., Fouad, S., Abdelfatah, A. (2025). The practice and knowledge among community pharmacists about dispensing antibiotics in Egypt; a cross-sectional study. EKB Journal Management System, 6(2), 575-587. doi: 10.21608/mid.2024.330169.2300
Akram N Salah; Ahmed M Aboelyazed; Aly M Waseem; Samy Fouad; Amr M Abdelfatah. "The practice and knowledge among community pharmacists about dispensing antibiotics in Egypt; a cross-sectional study". EKB Journal Management System, 6, 2, 2025, 575-587. doi: 10.21608/mid.2024.330169.2300
Salah, A., Aboelyazed, A., Waseem, A., Fouad, S., Abdelfatah, A. (2025). 'The practice and knowledge among community pharmacists about dispensing antibiotics in Egypt; a cross-sectional study', EKB Journal Management System, 6(2), pp. 575-587. doi: 10.21608/mid.2024.330169.2300
Salah, A., Aboelyazed, A., Waseem, A., Fouad, S., Abdelfatah, A. The practice and knowledge among community pharmacists about dispensing antibiotics in Egypt; a cross-sectional study. EKB Journal Management System, 2025; 6(2): 575-587. doi: 10.21608/mid.2024.330169.2300

The practice and knowledge among community pharmacists about dispensing antibiotics in Egypt; a cross-sectional study

Microbes and Infectious Diseases
Volume 6, Issue 2, May 2025, Page 575-587  XML PDF (1.09 MB)
Document Type: Original Article
DOI: 10.21608/mid.2024.330169.2300
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Authors
Akram N Salah email 1; Ahmed M Aboelyazed2; Aly M Waseem3; Samy Fouad4; Amr M Abdelfatah3
1Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Badr University in Cairo, Badr City, Cairo 11829, Egypt.
2Department of Pharmaceutical chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Badr University in Cairo, Badr City 11829, Cairo, Egypt
3Department of Pharmaceutical Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Badr University in Cairo, Badr City, Cairo 11829, Egypt.
4Pharmacist and Biostatistician, Alexandria University, Cairo, Egypt
Abstract
Background: Antibiotics dispensing without prescription is a common practice in some countries causing several health-related issues such as microbial resistance. Aim: This study aims to assess the level of practices and knowledge among community pharmacists about antibiotic dispensing in some Egyptian governorates’ pharmacies. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out using an online questionnaire to different 5 Egyptian governorates during a period from 28th January to 3rd March 2024. Results: A total of 117 community pharmacists from different community pharmacies participated in the study from different Egyptian governorates with the majority (44.4%) from Cairo. A majority (73.5%) were readily aware that dispensing antibiotics without a prescription is legal in Egypt. Additionally, 94% indicated that dispensing antibiotics without a prescription is a common practice in community pharmacies in Egypt, the most common class (59%) of antibiotics dispensed without a prescription was Penicillin, followed by Cephalosporins with 44.4%, about69.2% of community pharmacists occasionally provide antibiotics without a prescription when requested by a patient. Additionally, 60.7% suggest over-the-counter drugs for patients showing infection symptoms without needing antibiotics, and approximately 84.6% inquire about patients' allergy history before giving out antibiotics without a prescription. Conclusion: The level of knowledge among community pharmacists is high referring to some practices related to antibiotic dispensing with most responses revealing that dispensing antibiotics without a prescription is legal in Egypt.
Keywords
Knowledge; Practices; Community pharmacists; Antibiotics; Egypt
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