ArticlePharmacy practice
Antibiotic prescribing for acute uncomplicated cystitis in Lebanese community pharmacies using a simulated patient.
Article in Pharmacy practice. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.
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Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 17 citations in OpenAlex.
- Community pharmacists' history taking practice in responding to acute uncomplicated cystitis: A simulated patient study from Sudan.PloS one · 2026Article
- Evaluation of routine practices of dispensing pattern among community pharmacists in Can Tho city, Vietnam: A cross-sectional simulated patient approach.Journal of public health research · 2023Article
- The Extent of Antibiotic Dispensing in Self-Medication Encounters in Sudan: A Simulated Patient Study Focusing on Cefixime Sale.Integrated pharmacy research & practice · 2023Article
- Feasibility of using simulated patients for onsite structured practice feedback in Jordanian community pharmacy settings.Saudi pharmaceutical journal : SPJ : the official publication of the Saudi Pharmaceutical Society · 2022Article
- Assessment of community pharmacy management towards self-medication requests of tetracyclines for pregnant women: a simulated client study in Upper Egypt.International journal of clinical pharmacy · 2021Article
- A Simulated Client Exploration of Nonprescription Dispensing of Antibiotics at Drugstores for Pediatric Acute Diarrhea and Upper Respiratory Infection in Lahore, Pakistan.Infection and drug resistance · 2021Article
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- Evaluation of simulated drug dispensing and patient counseling in the course of pharmaceutical improvement: 2009 to 2015.Pharmacy practiceArticle
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Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundUrinary tract infections are considered as one of the most frequent bacterial infections in the community and hospital settings. In this era of increasing antimicrobial resistance, antimicrobial stewardship has become highly important in the struggle to preserve the effectiveness of available drugs. One the main causes of antibiotic resistance is the inappropriate prescribing of antibiotics; which evidence show that community pharmacists contribute to.
objectiveThis study aims to evaluate antibiotic prescribing rate and responses of the contact persons in community pharmacies and to assess the conformity of the prescribed antibiotics with international guidelines. It also aims to evaluate the responses with sociodemographic characteristics.
methodsA cross-sectional, nationwide study conducted between February and May 2017 using a simulated patient case of acute uncomplicated cystitis. Two hundred fifty pharmacies were included. Descriptive data was reported for the medications prescribed, conformity, questions asked and counseling. Bivariate analysis using the Pearson chi-squared, Fisher's exact and Student's t-tests were used to identify possible factors affecting the prescribing rates and responses in community pharmacies.
resultsThe prescribing rate of antibiotics was 83.6% (n=209) with ciprofloxacin being the most prescribed (50.2%, n=105). The global conformity to international guidelines was 3.8% (n=8) with the highest conformity rate for the antibiotic choice (91.4%, n=191). Counseling about what to do in case symptoms persist was 12.8% (n=32) and that of non-pharmacological management was 53.6% (n=134). Male participants (88.1%) had a higher prescribing rate than female participants (77.6%) (p<0.05). The number of questions asked was higher in pharmacists and in female participants (p<0.05). Other results showed non-significant differences in diagnosis, antibiotic prescribing, conformity rates, referral rates and counseling points between the pharmacists and assistants.
conclusionsThe high antibiotic prescribing rate in Lebanese community pharmacies is alarming and calls for action. This should be tackled by legislative bodies, which should enforce laws that restrict such practices.
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