Integrated Pharmacy Research and Practice (Oct 2023)
Ecopharmacology: Knowledge, Attitude, and Medication Disposal Practice Among Pharmacy Students
Abstract
Kale Gubae,1 Tilaye Arega Moges,2 Samuel Agegnew Wondm,1 Fasil Bayafers Tamene,1 Mekdes Kiflu,1 Endalamaw Aschale,3 Eyayaw Ashete Belachew4 1Department of Pharmacy, College of Health Sciences, Debre Markos University, Debre Markos, Ethiopia; 2Department of Pharmacy, College of Health Sciences, Debre Tabor University, Debre Tabor, Ethiopia; 3Clinical Pharmacy Unit, Department of Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Bahir Dar University, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia; 4Department of Clinical Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, EthiopiaCorrespondence: Kale Gubae, Email [email protected]: Ecopharmacology, as a form of drug management for the environment, focuses on the impact of drugs on the environment. Pharmacists, and by extension pharmacy students, are expected to play an important role in ecopharmacology. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the knowledge and attitude towards ecopharmacology and the practice of disposal of leftover or expired medicines among pharmacy students.Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study among pharmacy students in Northwestern Ethiopia. The study took place from May 1 to June 15, 2023. A self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection.Results: Four hundred and forty-five students were included in the study. Only 91 (20%) of the students were aware of the term ecopharmacology, 27% knew that excretion from the human or animal body is the major route by which pharmaceutical agents enter the environment, and 42% were aware of the risk of increased antimicrobial resistance due to antibiotic residues in the environment. In addition, only 27% of respondents reported receiving information about the disposal of pharmaceuticals. The most common method of disposing of medications was throwing them away in household trash (61.8%).Conclusion: Our results suggest that while most pharmacy students in Ethiopia have a positive attitude toward ecopharmacology, they do not know enough about ecopharmacology and dispose of their medicines poorly. More uniform education in ecopharmacology and pharmaceutical pollution might be warranted in the pharmacy curriculum.Keywords: ecopharmacology, pharmacy students, medication disposal, Ethiopia
