The Relationship Between Painkiller Prescription Knowledge and Attitude in Family Physicians and the Personal and Professional Characteristics of Physicians

Halim Şahin, Hilal Özkaya

Keywords: Analgesic Drugs, Drug Effects, Drug Interactions, Drug Prescriptions, Family Practice, Professional Competence

Background:

Pain is an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage or similar injury. The frequency, dosage and type of analgesics used in pain treatment are crucial factors.

Research questions:

This study aims to investigate whether there is a relationship between the prescribing knowledge and habits of analgesics among family physicians and their personal and professional characteristics.

Method:

Our cross-sectional study was conducted through face-to-face survey administration. A 30-question survey form was utilized and the study included 321 participants meeting the inclusion criteria, consisting of physicians working in family health centers in Istanbul, between April 1, 2023, and June 30, 2023.

Results:

It was found that 87.3% of participants had not received any training on pain management in the last year and 71.2% considered their experience in pain management partially sufficient. %60,1 of participants sometimes prescribed analgesics upon the patient's request, 56.3% always provided information to the patient about the prescribed analgesic. Furthermore, 34.7% had never prescribed opioids. Physicians working longer, middle-aged physicians and specialist physicians prescribed analgesics less frequently and provided information more frequently about the prescribed analgesics. Physicians who received education on pain management during medical school were found to prescribe opioid-type medications more frequently. In the middle-aged group and among specialist physicians, there was a significantly greater attention to drug interactions, the originality of the drug, bioavailability and the development of resistance.

Conclusions:

It was found that half of the physicians received education about pain management during medical school. Half of the physicians felt competent in pain management. Experienced and educated physicians were observed to place more emphasis on rational drug use and researching current information when prescribing analgesics. The conclusion drawn is that providing physicians with training on pain management during both medical school and post-graduation is necessary to enhance their competence in this area.

Points for discussion:

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