The knowledge, attitude and behaviours of nurses about pharmacovigilance, adverse drug reaction and adverse event reporting in a state hospital

OBJECTIVE: With the use of any drug comes the possibility of unintended consequences which when harmful are referred to as adverse drug reactions (ADRs). The development of national pharmacovigilance systems is the responsibility of all health workers. The aim of this study was to investigate the knowledge of nurses about pharmacovigilance and attitudes about ADR and adverse event reporting.
METHODS: This descriptive-cross sectional study was performed in 112 nurses working in a public hospital. The questionnaire was applied about pharmacovigilance and adverse drug reactions. The knowledge, attitudes and practices about adverse drug reactions were asked.
RESULTS: The 74.1% of the nurses definition of “severe adverse effect” of drug therapy. The ratio of participants who knew that ADRs are reported to contact person responsible from pharmacovigilance was 34.9%. Although 70.5% of nurses knew the necessity of ADR reporting, the 8% of the nurses knew Turkish Pharmacovigilance Center (TÜFAM). Only 8% of nurses reported ADRs in their professionality.
CONCLUSION: Although most of the participants knew the importance of ADR event reporting, event reporting was low. Thiese results showed that there is a lack of knowledge about pharmacovigilance. Futher studies with different settings and healthcare staff are needed to improve awareness about pharmacovigilance.

Bir Devlet Hastanesinde Çalýþan Hemþirelerin Farmakovijilans, Advers Ýlaç Reaksiyonu ve Olay Raporlama Hakkýndaki Bilgi Tutum ve Davranýþlarý

AMAÇ: Herhangi bir ilaç kullanýldýðýnda istenmeyen sonuçlar geliþebilir, zararlý etkiler görülür ise bunlara advers ilaç reaksiyonu (AÝR) adý verilir. Ulusal farmakovijilans sistemlerinin geliþmesi tüm saðlýk çalýþanlarýnýn ortak sorumluluðundadýr. Bu çalýþmanýn amacý, bir devlet hastanesinde çalýþan hemþirelerin farmakovijilans-AÝR bilgi düzeyleri ve AÝR olay raporlama ile ilgili davranýþlarýnýn belirlenmesidir.
YÖNTEMLER: Kesitsel ve tanýmlayýcý tipte olan bu çalýþma bir devlet hastanesinde çalýþmakta olan 112 hemþireye anket uygulanarak gerçekleþtirilmiþtir. AÝR olay bildirimi hakkýndaki bilgi, tutum ve davranýþlarý sorgulanmýþtýr
BULGULAR: Hemþirelerin % 74.1’i ciddi ilaç reaksiyonu tanýmýný bilmekteydi. Advers etki bildirimlerinin farmakovijilans sorumlusuna yapýlmasý gerekliliði bilen oraný % 34.9 idi. Hemþirelerin %70.5’i AÝR raporlanýn yapýlmasý gerekliliðini biliyordu, ancak “TÜFAM’ý” bilen oraný % 8’di. Profesyonelliklerinde ilaç yan etki raporlama yapanlarýn oraný sadece % 8’dir.
SONUÇ: AÝR bilinmesine raðmen, olay raporlama kanallarýnýn bilinmediði ve raporlama oranlarýnýn çok düþük olduðu saptanmýþtýr. Bu sonuçlar, farmakovijilans konusunda bilgi eksikliði olduðunu göstermektedir. Farmakovijilans konusundaki farkýndalýðýn geliþtirilmesi için, farklý bölgelerde saðlýk çalýþanlarýyla yapýlacak çalýþmalara ihtiyaç vardýr.