Oral contraceptives: knowledge and counselling practices of Lebanese community pharmacists

Objectives: To examine the extent of Lebanese pharmacists' knowledge about oral contraceptives (OCs), the characteristics influencing their knowledge and the factors that may predict their counselling practices. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted between January and June 2020 in which a random sample of community pharmacists in Lebanon was asked to complete a self-administered questionnaire. The survey was divided into three sections including demographic information, pharmacists' knowledge and counselling practices, and their perceptions about OCs. Key findings: Of the 300 pharmacists invited to participate, 240 (80%) responded. The majority of the pharmacists (255; 85%) had satisfactory general knowledge about the indications, side effects, contraindications and drug interactions of OCs. However, only 173 (57.5%) participants had satisfactory knowledge about the proper use of OCs. Older pharmacists and those who have been in practice for more than 10 years achieved lower knowledge scores; however, those with postgraduate degrees had significantly higher scores. Pharmacists with a postgraduate degree and male pharmacists were less likely to counsel patients compared with their counterparts. Conversely, pharmacists with postgraduate OC training and those who had a private area for consultation presented better counselling practices. Conclusions: More than half of the participating pharmacists appeared to have satisfactory knowledge about OCs and their proper use; however, limited counselling and key misconceptions were observed in this study.