Background:

Herbal products are increasingly used by patients, often without informing their physicians, raising safety concerns related to herb-drug interactions. Despite this growing trend, limited data exist on clinicians’ awareness and attitudes regarding the safe use of these products. This study aims to address this knowledge gap and contribute evidence that may guide future training and policy development.

Research questions:

What are clinicians’ attitudes towards the safe use of herbal products? Which clinician characteristics (e.g., age, specialty, years of experience, phytotherapy training) are associated with more positive attitudes or greater awareness?

Method:

This planned cross-sectional analytical study will use a structured questionnaire consisting of three parts: sociodemographic information, personal and professional use of herbal products, and the “Attitude Scale on the Safe Use of Herbal Products.” The survey will be administered face-to-face to clinicians from different specialties and healthcare settings across Turkey. Both descriptive and inferential statistical analyses (e.g., t-tests, ANOVA, regression) will be applied to assess associations between attitude scores and variables such as gender, experience, and phytotherapy training.

Results:

We expect to identify knowledge gaps and variability in clinicians’ attitudes based on background characteristics. Results are anticipated to inform the need for structured education and contribute to safer clinical practices involving herbal product use. The study could serve as a basis for developing targeted interventions and policy recommendations.

Conclusions:

This planned study aims to generate new insights into clinician attitudes towards herbal products, supporting safer integration of such therapies into patient care. It has the potential to inform continuing medical education and promote more informed, evidence-based discussions between patients and providers.

Points for discussion:

What are effective ways to assess and improve clinicians’ knowledge about herbal product safety?

What barriers exist to clinician–patient communication about herbal product use?