Food-drug interactions: Knowledge among pharmacists in Jordan

BACKGROUND: Pharmacists have crucial role in providing drug information and medication counseling to patients. This survey aimed to benchmark the current knowledge of the pharmacists concerning food-drug interactions (FDIs) in Jordan.

METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Amman, the capital and largest city of Jordan, using a validated questionnaire. It was distributed to pharmacists working in community and hospital pharmacies using a convenience sampling technique. Descriptive and inferential statistics were performed in this study.

RESULTS: A total of 340 questionnaires distributed, 300 (88%) pharmacists responded. Over 50% of pharmacists claimed that they have sufficient knowledge regarding FDI. Virtually, the overall median (interquartile range) knowledge score was 18 (15-21), approximately 60%. The highest knowledge scores were for alcohol-drug interactions section (66.6%) followed by both common food-drug interactions and the timing of drug intake to food consumption sections with a score of (58.3%) for each, reflecting a suboptimal knowledge of FDIs among the pharmacists.

CONCLUSION: Pharmacists had unsatisfactory knowledge about common FDIs, with no significant difference between hospital and community pharmacists. Therefore, more attention and efforts should be played to improve awareness about potential food-drug interactions.