Fahad T. Alsulami

Background: Deprescribing is a supervised, patient-centred process for reducing or stopping medicines when their burden, harm, or lack of continuing indication outweighs expected benefits. This study assessed attitudes toward deprescribing, examined the exploratory psychometric performance of the revised Patients’ Attitudes Towards Deprescribing (rPATD) questionnaire, and identified factors associated with stated willingness to deprescribe among adults using prescribed medicines in western Saudi Arabia. Methods: An analytical cross-sectional survey was conducted from 15 February to 30 April 2025 in six community pharmacies and three outpatient clinics in Taif, Makkah, and Jeddah. Adults taking at least one prescribed medicine completed a paper-based Arabic rPATD questionnaire. Internal consistency, exploratory factor analysis, Spearman correlations, Mann–Whitney U tests, ordinal logistic regression, and a fully adjusted binary logistic regression sensitivity analysis were used. Results: Of 362 adults assessed, 320 were included in the final analysis. Overall, 254/320 (79.4%) agreed or strongly agreed that they would stop one or more medicines if their physician recommended it. Cronbach’s alpha ranged from 0.77 to 0.84, and McDonald’s omega ranged from 0.79 to 0.85. The four-factor exploration solution explained 61.4% of the variance. Greater involvement (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 2.84, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.98–4.06) and greater perceived medication inappropriateness (aOR 2.31, 95% CI 1.67–3.20) were associated with higher willingness, whereas concerns about stopping were associated with lower willingness (aOR 0.54, 95% CI 0.39–0.75). Medication burden was correlated with willingness but was not independently associated after adjustment (aOR 1.28, 95% CI 0.94–1.75; p = 0.112). Conclusions: Participants reported generally favourable stated willingness to deprescribe when advised by a physician. Involvement, perceived medication inappropriateness, and concerns about stopping were independently associated with willingness. These cross-sectional findings concern intention rather than actual deprescribing behaviour or clinical outcomes.

Antimicrobial selection, prescribing, and resistance are global health issues resulting from the overuse and misuse of antimicrobials in the healthcare and

Background: Digital Health innovative technologies, encompassing eHealth, mHealth, e-learning, tele-health, artificial intelligence (AI), tele-medicine, tele pharmacy, virtual reality, and augmented reality, are increasingly incorporated into learning and pharmacy education to prepare students for a Digital healthcare environment. However, evidence on the impact and implementation of these technologies still needs to be explored.Objective: The current scoping review collates and appraises the impact of Digital Health on pharmacy education, evaluating effects on learning outcomes, skill development, competencies, and readiness for tele pharmacy and Digital Health application transformations. The primary objective was to explore the impact of Digital Health (eHealth, mHealth, e learning, telehealth, AI, telemedicine, tele pharmacy, VR, ML, and AR) in pharmacy education via structured scoping review reporting.Methods: A systematic search following PRISMA guidelines conducted across databases, including Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science for recent papers published on Digital Health in pharmacy education from 2019 to 2024. Post-screening, 47 studies met the final criteria.Results: 47 studies were included in the current scoping review. Five themes emerged (1) Curriculum integration and transformation in pharmacy education; (2) Digital literacy (competency development); (3) Tele pharmacy (remote health services and AI) in education; (4) Practical skill development (interactive learning through Digital tools) and (5) Student and faculty perceptions, attitudes, and challenges in adopting Digital Health. Digital Health integration improves students’ Digital competence, engagement, and tele pharmacy readiness, though gaps remain in curriculum standardization. Regional disparities show integration, which more advanced in Western programs, while foundational efforts seen in Asian, Middle East and North Africa (MENA) regions. The current review emphasized the importance of faculty developing, workload integration, regional disparities, and ethical concerns with AI and challenges in hybrid learning.Conclusion: Digital Health has been an innovator in pharmacy students’ education, equipping them with the skills and competences required in today’s healthcare environment. However, faculty development, curriculum gaps, workload integration, insufficient telehealth training, regional disparities, and inadequate AI ethics instruction all point to the need for adequate and relevant curriculum modifications to qualify graduates to deal with Digital healthcare challenges.

Workplace violence (WPV) is a prevailing global concern among healthcare providers (HCPs). Pharmacists may be more vulnerable to WPV than other HCPs due to being the most trusted, approachable, and accessible healthcare workers. However, in Saudi Arabia, there is little research on violence in the workplace among pharmacists working in different sectors. This is a cross-sectional survey study. An online survey was adopted from previous studies and distributed to a convenience sample of pharmacists by email and social media using a link to a web-based survey platform in QuestionPro. SPSS 28 was used for analysis. Logistic regression was employed to assess the association between WPV exposure and the participants’ characteristics. Three hundred and nineteen pharmacists participated in the study. A total of 156 (48.9%) reported exposure to workplace violence. Most participants had experienced verbal abuse (39.7%). Most offenders were male (84.6%), and aged 21–45 years (66.7%). Common causes included lack of a penalty (13.3%), and absence of reporting systems (11.4%). Seventy-eight percent of participants reported that the violence affected them negatively, leading to hopelessness (19.7%), and decreased work performance and productivity (15.1%). Logistic regression indicated that working as a staff (OR: 3.165; 95% CI 1.118–8.96, p = 0.030), working evening or night shift (OR: 2.4456; 95% CI 1.340–4.503, p = 0.004), and lacking procedure for reporting the violence (OR: 0.412; 95% CI 0.236–0.717, p = 0.002) were more likely to be victim of workplace violence than their counterparts. In Saudi Arabia, the risk of WPV events occurrence among pharmacists is high. The findings can guide the creation of appropriate policies, actions, and safety procedures to prevent and address WPV against pharmacists.

Specific actions to promote the RUD in public and private hospitals are highly needed. The current study aimed to assess RUD based on World Health Organization (WHO) prescribing indicators in selected public and private hospitals in Khartoum state-Sudan. A multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted in six public and three private hospitals. After ethics approval, a consecutive random sample of 2880 patient encounter prescriptions was selected. The IRDP indicates adherence to RUD. The average number of drugs per patient encounter prescription was 1.7 ± 0.2 and 2.5 ± 0.2 (overall 2.1) in public and private hospitals, respectively. Drugs prescribed generically were 61% (index 0.61) in public hospitals and 24% (index 0.24) in private hospitals. The index of injection prescribing was 0.1 for public and 0.85 for private hospitals. Drugs on the EDL accounted for 94% of prescriptions in public hospitals and 70% in private hospitals. The EDL prescribing index was 0.94 for public and 0.7 for private hospitals. The overall mean IRDP for public and private hospitals was 3.11. Inadequate prescribing patterns in public and private hospitals significantly deviate from WHO standards across most prescribing indicators. Consequently, public and private hospitals should strive to promote the RUD.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate parental willingness to vaccinate their male children against human papillomavirus in the Makkah region of Saudi Arabia, and to explore the influence of Health Belief Model constructs on this willingness.Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among parents aged 18 years and older residing in the Makkah region of Saudi Arabia, each with at least one male child. Participants were recruited using non-probability convenience sampling. Data were collected through a self-administered online questionnaire assessing HPV-related knowledge, willingness to vaccinate, and Health Belief Model constructs. Descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, and independent samples t-tests were used to assess group differences. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was conducted to identify factors associated with willingness to vaccinate, adjusting for sociodemographic variables.Results: A total of 604 parents participated, with approximately 40 percent expressing high willingness to vaccinate their male children. Parents who demonstrated greater willingness had better knowledge about human papillomavirus and its vaccine, perceived higher susceptibility of their children to the virus, viewed the infection as more severe, recognized greater benefits of vaccination, and identified more cues to take action compared to those with lower willingness. Multivariable logistic regression analyses, adjusted for relevant sociodemographic variables, indicated that perceived susceptibility (odds ratio = 2.85; p < 0.001), perceived benefits (odds ratio = 1.88; p = 0.020), and cues to action (odds ratio = 2.92; p < 0.001) were significantly associated with willingness to vaccinate.Conclusion: The study highlights that parental willingness to vaccinate male children against human papillomavirus in the Makkah region is significantly influenced by perceived susceptibility, perceived benefits of the vaccine, and cues to action. Interventions aimed at increasing awareness of the risks associated with human papillomavirus and the benefits of vaccination, as well as strengthening actionable prompts, may enhance vaccination uptake.

Introduction: Adverse drug reaction (ADR) reporting is critical for ensuring medication safety. However, underreporting remains a global concern, particularly in community pharmacy settings. This study explores the behavioral factors influencing community pharmacists’ intention to report ADRs in Saudi Arabia, using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) as a guiding framework.Aims and Objectives: This study aimed to estimate factors affecting community pharmacists’ intention to report ADRs to the Saudi National Pharmacovigilance Center (NPC) through a TPB-based analysis.Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted to collect data on pharmacists’ intentions, attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and moral obligation regarding ADR reporting. Descriptive statistics summarized the sample characteristics. Binary logistic regression was used to evaluate the influence of TPB constructs on reporting intentions.Results: Among 452 participating community pharmacists, 88% were aware of the NPC, but only 27.4% had reported ADRs in the past year. Pharmacists who were non-Saudi, aware of the NPC and its procedures, and trained in ADR reporting demonstrated significantly higher intentions to report (p < 0.05). Attitudes (OR = 1.141, 95% CI: 1.09–1.18, p < 0.001), subjective norms (OR = 1.280, 95% CI: 1.16–1.40, p < 0.001), perceived behavioral control (OR = 1.168, 95% CI: 1.03–1.31, p = 0.010), and moral obligation (OR = 1.417, 95% CI: 1.05–1.89, p = 0.019) were all significantly associated with reporting intention.Conclusion: Findings reinforce the importance of targeting TPB constructs (particularly attitudes, social norms, and perceived control) and perceived moral obligation in designing interventions to improve ADR reporting. Strategies such as structured training, institutional support, and promoting moral responsibility may bridge the gap between awareness and actual reporting practices among community pharmacists in Saudi Arabia.

Objective: This study assessed hospital pharmacists’ awareness, attitudes, and behaviors regarding adverse drug reaction (ADR) reporting and explored cognitive factors shaping hospital pharmacists’ intentions to report ADRs, using the theory of planned behavior (TPB) as a framework. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among hospital pharmacists from various regions of Saudi Arabia. Data were collected on their intentions to report ADRs to the national pharmacovigilance center (NPC), along with their attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control related to ADR reporting. Descriptive statistics summarized the data, while multivariate logistic regression analyzed the influence of TPB constructs on reporting intentions. Results: A total of 141 hospital pharmacists participated in the study. While 86.5% of them were aware of the Saudi NPC, only 30% had reported ADRs in the past year. A strong intention to report ADRs was observed in 56% of the hospital pharmacists. Additionally, 53% exhibited a highly positive attitude, 57% perceived strong social norms, 52.5% reported high perceived behavioral control, and 63.8% expressed a strong moral obligation to report ADRs. Subjective norms and moral obligation emerged as significant predictors of the hospital pharmacists’ intention to report ADRs, according to the TPB constructs. Conclusions: While awareness of the Saudi NPC among hospital pharmacists was high, ADR reporting rates were low. Enhancing education, addressing barriers, and leveraging moral and normative drivers may strengthen pharmacovigilance practices and improve ADR reporting adherence among hospital pharmacists, ultimately fostering safer healthcare delivery.

Background: Over the counter (OTC) medications are readily accessible to the public and can be obtained without a prescription for self-care. Ensuring their safe and effective use is essential to safeguarding the well-being of the region’s diverse population. This research explores public attitudes and behaviors toward OTC medications in the Western Region of Saudi Arabia in order to inform and advance public health initiatives. Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Western Region of Saudi Arabia. A validated questionnaire was used to survey 200 respondents. The collected data were analyzed using frequencies and percentages. The demographic–OTC medication purchase relationship was examined using the chi-square test. Results: Among the 200 participants, 79.5% were aware of potential drug interactions, and 74% supported stricter regulations on OTC sales. However, only 29.5% believed OTC medications are generally safe without a doctor’s prescription. Notably, 15.5% reported exceeding recommended dosages, and 66% admitted sharing medications. Participants commonly relied on healthcare professionals for advice (64.6%). Despite moderate knowledge, many exhibited risky behaviors, highlighting gaps in consumer awareness and safety practices. Conclusions: It is critical to determine the degree of public knowledge in this field in order to identify gaps in consumer awareness of OTC medications and specific areas that may demand targeted educational programs in Saudi Arabia. Information on potential side effects and circumstances that exclude the use of over the counter medications must also be examined. Attitudes towards symptom management and a tendency for self-medication may influence the use of OTC as an alternative to seeking medical advice.