Readiness of Community Pharmacists to Play a Supportive and Advocacy Role in the Fight Against Corona Virus Disease

BACKGROUND: As the coronavirus disease pandemic continues to severely strain healthcare systems across the globe, there is need to determine whether every facet of the healthcare system is ready to respond. PURPOSE OF THE STUDY: The study investigated whether community pharmacists in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are ready to play a supportive role in the fight against COVID-19. METHODS: The study employed a descriptive cross-sectional survey. A descriptive analysis to capture the demographic characteristics of the sampled population, frequency tables and graphs were generated to capture community pharmacists’ practice, readiness, attitudes and awareness. The means of the subset of knowledge on COVID-19 etiology, prognosis and management, and the practice, attitudes were compared in a one way analysis of variance to determine whether the difference was significant to predict preparedness towards playing a supportive role in the fight against COVID-19. RESULTS: The practice of community pharmacist as reflected adherence to recommended guidelines by the ministry of health on COVID-19 management and control. About 74% always disinfected contact surfaces, 69% conducted basic temperature checks on staff members and customers. Community pharmacists in Saudi Arabia displayed positive attitudes towards fight against COVID-19 [m = 4.08 and a relatively narrow difference in percentage distribution between those who were not sure and those who claimed to be very satisfied 20%]. Community pharmacists in KSA displayed extensive knowledge on the subject of COVID-19 as all respondents were aware of the primary symptoms of COVID-19 (100%), 62% were aware of COVID-19 management strategies, 81% believed information supplied through the ministry was sufficient. A p value of 0.00 indicated that the results were significant to support the assumption that community pharmacists in KSA were prepared to play a supportive role in the fight against COVID-19. CONCLUSION: The result demonstrated readiness among Saudi Arabian community pharmacists to be integrated into COVID-19 pandemic planning and response.