Evaluation of Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Community Pharmacists in Oral Contraceptives, Counseling and Dispensing in Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Background: Unwanted pregnancy leads to economical and health burden on females and societies. To avoid this, different
methods of contraception have been developed. Oral contraceptives as a method, due to less cost and least failure, have found
its way through consumers. Important aspect of this method is proper consumption to minimize risk of pregnancy. Pharmacists
play role in improving knowledge and compliance of consumers. Method: The study was online cross sectional, conducted
over Tehran province in Iran. Questionnaire distributed by online over community pharmacists. Sample was found to be 71
(confidence interval 90% and margin error of 10%). Chi Square test and Correlation-Regression were used for analysis of data.
Results: While most of respondents were female with less than 5 years experiences, there were found to have poor knowledge
in dispensing and counseling about oral contraceptives. Approximately 69% of respondents had good practice. No significant
association (p-value< 0.05) was obtained between the dispensing practice of respondents and their knowledge level. Knowledge and practice towards oral contraceptives were higher among the female respondents. Conclusion: Poor knowledge, good attitude and good practice of community pharmacists regarding dispensing and counseling of OCPs were observed.