Attitudes and practices of physicians toward law enforcement on dispensing antibiotics without prescription antibiotics: Findings from a cross-sectional survey

BACKGROUND: The government of Saudi Arabia implemented a law to enforce the law and regulations prohibiting the dispensing of antibiotics without a prescription, and studies have been conducted to assess the impact of such a law in Saudi Arabia. However, the extent to which law enforcement has changed the perceptions and attitudes of health care professionals, mainly physicians, toward antibiotic resistance is unknown in Saudi Arabia. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Riyad, Saudi Arabia, on 378 physicians. These physicians were mainly working in primary care centers. An online questionnaire was sent to the physicians, and it consisted of 35 items and was divided into four sections: 6 items were on sociodemographic characteristics of participants; 13 items were on the knowledge of physicians about antibiotic resistance; 8 items were on the attitude the physicians toward enforcement law, and the final 8 items were on the attitude the patients toward enforcement law in an outpatient setting. RESULTS: Around 90% of the physicians acknowledged that physicians should stop prescribing antibiotics without indication. About 29.1 % of the physicians agreed, and 56.3% showed strong agreement that law enforcement is for the patient’s benefit. Similarly, 33.6% agreed, and 50.8% strongly agreed that law enforcement limits the resistance of bacteria. Around 24.3% of the patients disagreed, and 23% strongly disagreed that law enforcement does not affect anything. Around one-third of the physicians (34.4%) agreed, and 23.5% strongly agreed that the new regulation of law enforcement of antibiotic prescription increases public awareness regarding the misuse of antibiotics. CONCLUSION: It seems that law enforcement has impacted the knowledge and attitude of physicians as they agree with law enforcement and its associated benefits for patients. They also acknowledged that law enforcement could limit the resistance to bacteria. However, not all physicians agree that law enforcement has an effect on anything, and new regulation of antibiotic prescription law increases public awareness regarding the misuse of antibiotics.