Knowledge base and practice among clinicians regarding oral anticoagulant therapy: A questionnaire survey

Abstract

Purpose: To assess the knowledge of clinicians regarding various aspects of anticoagulant therapy. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was done over 2 months among 55 clinicians at a tertiary hospital. A 30 point questionnaire based survey on various aspects of oral anticoagulant therapy was carried out. Clinician practices were also compared between physicians and surgeons. Results: Two thirds (67.3%) of the clinicians were not aware that different strengths of acitrom were not color coded. A majority (85.5%) verbally instructed their patients about the drug. Less than one fifths (18.2%) of the clinicians provided booklets and pamphlets for reference. Only 56.4% of clinicians were aware of the correct target range for INR to be achieved in patients. Dietary and drug history was not documented by 85.6% and 50.9% of clinicians respectively. Surgeons were more likely to give educational booklets to their patients, document a dietary history and instruct patients regarding concomitant alcohol use in comparison with physicians. Twenty (41.7%) clinicians reported that they encounter thrombosis as a complication in patients on OAT while 58.3% of the clinicians in the present study noted bleeding more often. Conclusion: There are significant lacunae in knowledge base among clinicians regarding oral anticoagulant therapy. More emphasis on physician education is needed for safe and optimal OAT in patients.

Keywords

• Clinician
• knowledge
• oral anticoagulation therapy
• practice
• questionnaire