ArticlePloS one2020
Community pharmacists' knowledge, perceptions, and practices about topical corticosteroid counseling: A real-world cross-sectional survey and focus group discussions in Korea.
Article in PloS one, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers.
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Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed, 27 citations in OpenAlex.
- From Cosmetic Abuse to Clinical Mismanagement: A National Simulated Patient Study Assessing Community Pharmacists' Stewardship of Topical Corticosteroids in Jordan.Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Administration Technique of Intranasal Corticosteroid Sprays Among Nepali Pharmacists: Cross-Sectional Study.JMIRx med · 2026Article
- The role of pharmacists in dermatology: a cross-sectional evaluation of the educational needs, knowledge, and practices of community pharmacists regarding the use of topical medications in chronic dermatological diseases.BMC health services research · 2025Article
- Knowledge, attitude, and practice of Malagasy pharmacy staff regarding the use of topical corticosteroids in children with atopic dermatitis.JAAD international · 2025Article
- Insight into Current Practices of Community Pharmacists in Topical Corticosteroid Prescribing and Counseling: Cross-Sectional Survey Study from Saudi Arabia.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- An evaluation of pharmacists' general attitudes, knowledge, and phobias regarding medications that include corticosteroids: a cross-sectional study.Journal of pharmaceutical health care and sciences · 2024Article
- Evaluation of knowledge, experiences, and fear toward prescribing and dispensing corticosteroids among Egyptian healthcare professionals: A cross-sectional study.Saudi pharmaceutical journal : SPJ : the official publication of the Saudi Pharmaceutical Society · 2023Article
- Topical corticosteroid counselling among Malaysian community pharmacists: a qualitative interview study.BMC primary care · 2023Article
- Community pharmacists' counseling practices and patient experiences about topical corticosteroids - an online survey in the Klang Valley, Malaysia.BMC primary care · 2022Article
- Reducing corticosteroid phobia in pharmacy staff and parents of children with atopic dermatitis.International journal of clinical pharmacy · 2021Article
- Information or Habit: What Health Policy Makers Should Know about the Drivers of Self-Medication among Romanians.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
10 authors at 5 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
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.
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