DATA ON EVALUATING THE ATTITUDE, BEHAVIOR, AND RELEVANT FACTORS IN DISPENSING ANTI-BIOTICS WITHOUT PRESCRIPTION AT PHARMACIES: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY IN VIETNAM

Objective: To standardize a questionnaire about the attitude and behavior of drug dispensers in dispensing antibiotics without prescription (DAwP), and to evaluate the attitude, behavior and relevant factors in DAwP of pharmacy dispensers (PDs) at community pharmacies (CPs) in Can Tho city, Viet Nam in 2022. Methods: The descriptive transversal study was a quantitative analysis of survey data, including a self-administered questionnaire based on the “Theory of Planned Behavior”. The questionnaire is composed of 33 statements scored on the 5-point Likert scale, which was completed by interview with 180 PDs to Can Tho. Results: Of the 80 participants, 65% of drug dispensers were female (n= 117), 59.4% graduated from medical university graduates (n= 107), and 80.6% had less than 10 years of experience (n=145). Pharmacies are the first destination that patients think about when they have health concerns. Unfortunately, it is not in compliance with the regulations governing the sale of antibiotics in case where clients ask for without a valid prescription. In the study, the authors found that Perceived Behavioral Control factors (PBC) were found to be the most critical determinants of the coefficient std. error by about 0.581. The Subjective standard is the second-most significant factor with the coefficient std. error around -0.395 in contrast, Attitudinal factors present no impact on intention to DAwP. Conclusions: The provision of non-prescription is primarily influenced by the perception of the distributors and external factors. It is necessary to develop interventions to make community aware of misuse and misunderstanding of antibiotics. Keywords: pharmacy dispensers, dispensing antibiotics without prescription, community pharmacies. WHAT WE ALREADY KNOW • When a patient in Vietnam has a health problem, community pharmacies/drugstores come to mind first. Sadly, it is illegal for a PDs to DAwP to a patient who is seeking treatment. • The overuse of antibiotics in the community is spreading widely in our country, resulting in the antimicrobial resistance (AMR) which is an urgent issue and affects on the future of healthcare industry. WHAT THIS ARTICLE ADDS • This is one of the few research that evaluates the factors that influence to DAwP of Vietnamese pharmacists. To identify and clarify the attitudes and behavior that contribute to DAwP, a wide range of possibly connected elements are taken into account. • The results of the present study having been obtained some effective solutions in changing the habits of PDs. • The findings of our study form the basis for future similar investigations.

研究目的：规范针对药品调配员无处方抗生素调配（Dispensing Antibiotics without Prescription, DAwP）相关态度与行为的调查问卷，并评估2022年越南芹苴市社区药房（Community Pharmacies, CPs）内药房调配员（Pharmacy Dispensers, PDs）开展无处方抗生素调配的态度、行为及相关影响因素。

研究方法：本研究为描述性横断面研究，采用定量分析方法对调查数据进行处理。调查问卷基于计划行为理论（Theory of Planned Behavior）编制，为自填式量表，包含33个采用5级李克特量表（Likert Scale）计分的条目，研究共对芹苴市的180名药房调配员开展访谈以完成问卷。

研究结果：本研究纳入的80名参与者中，65%的药品调配员为女性（n=117），59.4%为医科院校毕业生（n=107），80.6%的从业年限不足10年（n=145）。当患者出现健康问题时，社区药房是其首要就诊目的地。但遗憾的是，在患者无有效处方要求购买抗生素时，为其调配药品的行为并不符合相关监管规定。本研究结果显示，感知行为控制（Perceived Behavioral Control, PBC）因素是影响无处方抗生素调配行为的最关键决定因素，其标准误系数约为0.581。与之相对，主观规范是第二重要的影响因素，标准误系数约为-0.395；而态度因素对无处方抗生素调配的意愿无显著影响。

研究结论：无处方药品调配行为主要受调配员自身认知及外部因素影响。亟需制定干预措施，以提升公众对抗生素滥用及认知误区的认知水平。

关键词：药房调配员、无处方抗生素调配、社区药房。

• 已有研究认知：越南患者出现健康问题时，首先会想到社区药房/药店。遗憾的是，药房调配员为就诊患者无处方调配抗生素的行为属于违法行为。我国社区抗生素滥用问题日益严峻，由此引发的抗菌药物耐药性（Antimicrobial Resistance, AMR）已成为影响医疗卫生行业未来发展的紧迫公共卫生问题。

• 本研究新增价值：本研究是为数不多评估越南药师无处方抗生素调配行为影响因素的研究之一。为明确与无处方抗生素调配行为相关的态度与行为模式，本研究纳入了多种潜在关联因素进行分析。本研究结果可为改变药房调配员的执业习惯提供有效解决方案。本研究结果可为后续同类研究提供参考依据。