Vol. 5 No. 1 (2019): Malaysian Journal of Pharmacy


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Published: 1 December 2019

In this issue:

  • Knowledge level of government healthcare personnel in Labuan towards Registered Product and Notified Cosmetic)
  • The impact of implementing WMTAC towards anticoagulation treatment in Dungun Hospital

Knowledge Level of Government Healthcare Personnel in Labuan towards Registered Product and Notified Cosmetic

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    Abstract

    Introduction: All pharmaceutical products in Malaysia must be registered with the Drug Control Authority (DCA) whereas cosmetics must be notified with the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency (NPRA). Availability of unregistered products and unnotified cosmetics in the market are longstanding issues affecting public safety and health. It is vital that all government healthcare personnel (GHP) as the front liners are equipped with the knowledge to properly advise the public on this issue.

    Objective: This study aims to determine the level of knowledge towards registered products and notified cosmetics among various groups of GHP under the Ministry of Health facilities in Labuan.

    Methods: This was a cross-sectional study performed from August to November 2017 using a validated 12 question questionnaire. Respondents were divided into 4 groups (doctors/dentist, pharmacist, nurse, allied healthcare professional) and results between the groups were analysed using Chi-square analysis. Respondent’s knowledge was given score and those who scored 9 marks and above were considered to have good knowledge. Those who scored 8 marks and below were considered to have poor knowledge.

    Results: Only 40.2% Pharmacists have the highest score of good knowledge on registered products and notified cosmetics at 81.8% (n=18). The level of good knowledge among allied health professionals (AHP) stood at 42.9% (n=21), 36.4% of nurses (n=43) and 20% of doctors (n=6). However in total, only 40.2% (n=88) of the study population had good knowledge.

    Conclusion: The level of knowledge towards registered products and notified cosmetics among doctors, pharmacist, nurses and allied health professional in Labuan is poor as only 40.2% have good knowledge. This study shows a significant association between the levels of knowledge among GHP varies between groups of profession. Pharmacist group has the highest score in knowledge in this study and thus should be another reference for the general public and patients when it comes to health-related matters. Further re-education should be conducted to improve the knowledge of GHPs in Labuan with regards to this subject.

    The impact of implementing WMTAC towards anticoagulation treatment in Dungun Hospital

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      Abstract

      Objective: The main objective of this study is to compare patients’ outcome in anticoagulation treatment before and after Warfarin Medication Therapy Adherence Clinic (WMTAC). The study compares the cost of INR test between usual care (UC) and WMTAC. The study also determines factors affecting International Normalized Ratio (INR) level among WMTAC patients.

      Methods: A retrospective study involving WMTAC patients was conducted by trained pharmacists at Dungun Hospital. Patients were reviewed by UC for 4 months and continuously followed up by WMTAC for another 4 months were included in this study. Patients who passed away, transferred out and defaulted were excluded from the study. The data were derived from Patient Medical Record and recorded in Warfarin Data Collection Form for analyze.

      Results: The time in therapeutic range (TTR) was 73.46% for WMTAC and 45.58% for UC (p<0.001). The expanded TTR for WMTAC was 90.37% and 61.88% for UC (p<0.001). The percentage of time INR level <1.5 were 0.57% for WMTAC patients and 7.92% for UC patients, while 5.28% UC patients had INR level > 5. The total reagent costs of INR test were MYR 341.04 for WMTAC and MYR 519.40 for UC. The known factors affecting INR level in WMTAC patients were diet (55%), missed dose (36%) and drug interaction (9%).

      Conclusion: According to this study, the WMTAC implementation significantly improved anticoagulation treatment. Besides that, it also beneficial for our reagent cost expenses.