Pharmacists’ Knowledge, Perception and Attitude towards Certain Medication Administration Time

Objective: To assess the pharmacists’ perception and knowledge regarding the use of some chronic medication and appropriate administration timing.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was developed and randomly distributed to local retail pharmacies in the western region of Saudi Arabi between February 2019 to May 2019. We randomly selected 500 pharmacists at different shifts.

Results: The response was 86% of the sample we have selected. 90.7% responded that patients' daily routine plays a major role in their disease statuse such as diabetes, hypertension, and hypercholesterolemia. More than 76.3% of respondents did not know that blood pressure peaks in the mid-morning and in the evening but goes lower early in the morning. Only 40.9% knew that calcium channel blockers will be more effective if given in the late evening than in the morning.

Conclusion: The findings here suggest that more training, education and/or workshops will be beneficial in understanding medication time to produce an optimal effect.