Abstract

A QUESTIONNAIRE BASED SURVEY ON THE KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND PRACTICES ABOUT ANTIBIOTIC USAGE AND RESISTANCE AMONG THE SECOND YEAR MEDICAL STUDENTS OF A TEACHING TERTIARY CARE HOSPITAL

Apoorva B.M.*, Kiran L.J., Divya Bade, Deepa Patil, Umakant N. Patil

Abstract

Background: Antibiotics are the most commonly prescribed medications and the one often misused too. The threat of antibiotic resistance is increasing rapidly and needs immediate addressal. Practitioners have a pivotal role in combating antibiotic resistance by promoting awareness and also through their safe and rational prescribing. Examining the knowledge, attitude and practices of medical students regarding antibiotic resistance can assist in planning and devising an effective and tailored educational tool for them. Methods: A cross-sectional, questionnaire based survey was conducted among the second year medical students of a teaching hospital about the knowledge on antibiotic resistance, medical practices and their attitude regarding antibiotic usage. Simple descriptive statistics was used to generate frequencies, percentage and proportions. RESULTS: Response rate was 100%. All the participants have agreed that antibiotic resistance is a major public health problem. Ninety six percent of participants agree that indiscriminate use of antibiotics leads to antibiotic resistance and about ninety two percent of them are aware of the fact that antibiotics shouldn’t be taken for all the cases of common cold and cough. CONCLUSION: Our study revealed that most of the students were aware of the antimicrobial resistance, its usage and consequences, however responses related to their practices were quite varied, hence further educational interventions are needed to improve their attitude and practices towards antibiotic usage.

Keywords: antibiotic resistance, usage, medical students.