ECZACILIK ÖĞRENCİLERİNİN YÜKSEK RİSKLİ İLAÇLARIN KULLANIMI HAKKINDA BİLGİSİNİN DEĞERLENDİRİLMESİ

Objective: High alert medications (HAM) are medications commonly used in health care settings that are associated with significant harm when used in error. Improvement in the knowledge and practice of pharmacists is crucial to prevent and solve medication errors associated with HAM. This study aimed to assess the knowledge of pharmacy students about HAM. Material and Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted among pharmacy students (3rd, 4th and 5th-year students) through an online survey in Ankara, Türkiye between 1 May 2021 and 31 October 2021. A Turkish translated and validated version of the High Alert Medications Knowledge Questionnaire was used. Only a correct answer was given score of 1 among the knowledge questions. The common resources for HAM use in the practice were assessed. Result and Discussion: Among 124 students, 80.6% were female. The mean age (standard derivation ± SD) of the students was 23.3 ± 1.37 years. The percentages of the 3rd, 4th and 5th-year students were 51.6%, 16.1% and 32.3%, respectively. The mean ± SD score of the students was 6.8 ± 3.28 out of 20. The 5th-year students (8.00 ± 2.90) were more likely to get higher scores compared to 3rd-years (5.89 ± 3.15) (p = 0.003). RxMediaPharma® (local online drug information database) was the most (75.0%) commonly used resource by pharmacy students. The pharmacy students’ knowledge about HAM was poor. Educational interventions are necessary early in the clinical pharmacy curriculum to improve pharmacy students' knowledge and preparedness to handle HAM.