A comparative assessment of knowledge, attitude, and practice of pharmacovigilance among medical, pharmacy, and nursing students in South-West Nigeria

Objective: To assess the knowledge and attitude of undergraduates in the discipline of medicine, pharmacy and nursing about adverse drug reactions and their reporting. Methodology: This study was conducted among undergraduate students of medicine, pharmacy and nursing from five tertiary institutions located in South-West Nigeria. The questionnaire consisted of sections on the demographics of respondents, their knowledge, attitude and practice of ADR reporting. Results: A total of 711 undergraduates (345 medical, 262 pharmacy and 104 nursing students) completed the survey. A larger proportion of medical students knew the correct definition of pharmacovigilance compared to nursing and pharmacy students. The regulatory body for collating and monitoring ADRs in Nigeria was correctly identified by 64.3% of the study participants. The mean pharmacovigilance knowledge score for all respondents was 2.6/10 (SD – 1.3; Range: 0-6). Medical students (3.1/10) had the highest knowledge score, followed by nursing students (2.4/10) and pharmacy students (2.0/10) -P <.000. Nursing students (63.5%) had observed ADRs during their training more than the others. Pharmacy students (30.2%) in comparison to nursing (19.2%) and medical students (15.2%) knew the ADR reporting form (yellow form). Conclusion: Though the knowledge of Nigerian undergraduate medical, pharmacy and nursing students about adverse drug reactions and their’ reporting was generally poor, this study identified gaps peculiar to each of the three programmes. There is a need therefore for curriculum review of these programmes to include both theoretical and practical aspects of adverse drug reactions and their reporting.