Community pharmacists' knowledge, perceptions, and practices about topical corticosteroid counseling: A real-world cross-sectional survey and focus group discussions in Korea.

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  • Additional Information
    • Source:
      Publisher: Public Library of Science Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 101285081 Publication Model: eCollection Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1932-6203 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 19326203 NLM ISO Abbreviation: PLoS One Subsets: MEDLINE
    • Publication Information:
      Original Publication: San Francisco, CA : Public Library of Science
    • Subject Terms:
      Focus Groups* ; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice* ; Perception* ; Surveys and Questionnaires*; Adrenal Cortex Hormones/*administration & dosage ; Counseling/*statistics & numerical data ; Pharmacists/*statistics & numerical data; Administration, Topical ; Adult ; Community Pharmacy Services/statistics & numerical data ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Models, Statistical ; Patient Safety ; Pharmacists/psychology ; Republic of Korea
    • Abstract:
      Topical corticosteroids (TCs) are widely used to treat dermatological conditions such as eczema and psoriasis. It can be a safe and effective treatment when used appropriately. However, misguided information and corticosteroid phobia appear to contribute to inadequate adherence to therapy, leading to unsatisfactory treatment outcomes. Therefore, community pharmacists (CPs) are in a prime position to inform patients about the appropriate use of medicine. The aim of this study was to examine how the knowledge and perceptions of CPs, as well as other factors, associate CPs' patient counseling practice around the use of TCs. A structured, validated questionnaire was distributed to CPs in the Republic of Korea, and additional focus group discussions were implemented to obtain a deeper understanding of the survey findings. We analyzed the survey results by applying a modified knowledge-perception-practice model. In addition, we used path analysis to validate the model and assessed how knowledge level and perceptions of barriers affect CPs' counseling behavior. We ran a multiple regression to identify factors that associate CPs' practice levels. A total of 1018 surveys were analyzed. In general, respondents had sufficient knowledge to provide appropriate patient counseling on TC use. An increase in knowledge level positively associated the quality of practice, and more knowledge increased the perception of barriers that negatively associated patient counseling. Location in rural areas and pharmacists' perception of counseling barriers negatively associated the quality of practice. A higher level of knowledge, training in ADEs, higher proportion of OTC TC sales, and increased time for counseling positively associated the quality of practice. Therefore, minimizing barriers such as negative perceptions is very important in facilitating CPs' counseling practice around TC use.
      Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. The author Nam Gyu Kim's current affiliation is Wellmarker Bio Co, but they were not affiliated with that company during their involvement in this study, and Wellmarker Bio Co had no part in the research presented here. This does not alter our adherence to PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.
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    • Accession Number:
      0 (Adrenal Cortex Hormones)
    • Publication Date:
      Date Created: 20200730 Date Completed: 20200928 Latest Revision: 20200928
    • Publication Date:
      20240104
    • Accession Number:
      PMC7390350
    • Accession Number:
      10.1371/journal.pone.0236797
    • Accession Number:
      32726366