Heliyon (Aug 2024)
Evaluation of community pharmacy technicians’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices about erectile dysfunction and its predictors in Gondar Town: A cross-sectional descriptive study
Abstract
Background: Erection Dysfunction, which primarily affects males older than 40 years, is the inability to regularly produce or retain a penile erection that is strong enough to satisfy sexual activity. Objective: To evaluate knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to erectile dysfunction and its predictors among community pharmacy technicians in Gondar, Ethiopia. Method: We conducted a cross-sectional descriptive study on pharmacy technicians in Gondar from June 1, 2022, to August 30, 2022. The study included 165 respondents and utilized a standardized questionnaire with 42 questions to assess their knowledge (18 items), attitudes (5 items), practices (15 items), and demographic characteristics (4 items) regarding erectile dysfunction. We performed both univariate and multivariate analyses on the collected data. Results: Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that greater educational attainment was independently correlated with increased knowledge of erectile dysfunction. For postgraduate pharmacy education, the adjusted odds ratio (AOR) was 0.031 (95 % CI: 0.006–0.170, p < 0.001).Regarding work experience, the adjusted odds ratios (AORs) were as follows: 6.223E-010 (95 % CI: 9.713E-011-3.987E-009, p < 0.001) for 1–5 years, 7.940E-010 (95 % CI: 1.381E-010-4.566E-009, p < 0.001) for 5–10 years, and 6.134E-010 (95 % CI: 1.333E-010-2.824E-009, p < 0.001) for over 10 years.Additionally, respondents with 5–10 years of work experience had an AOR of 8.129 (95 % CI: 1.476–44.786, p = 0.016), and the gender of the participants had an AOR of 3.399 (95 % CI: 1.239–9.325, p = 0.017), both of which were associated with erectile dysfunction behaviors.The aggregate ratings indicated that the participants had moderate knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding erectile dysfunction. The Pearson Correlation Test revealed a significant positive relationship between knowledge of erectile dysfunction and attitude (r = 0.589 and p < 0.001) and practice (r = 0.524 and p < 0.001). Additionally, attitudes and practices showed a significant positive correlation (r = 0.321, p < 0.001). Conclusion: The study findings showed that pharmacy technicians have a moderate level of understanding, attitudes, and practices regarding erectile dysfunction. The scores for general erectile dysfunction knowledge, attitude, and practice showed a significant positive association (p < 0.001).
