Knowledge, attitude, and perception of public about participation in COVID-19 clinical trials: A study from Egypt and Saudi Arabia
Background: Pharmaceutical firms are striving to find potential treatments to prevent and treat COVID-19. One of the gold standards to evaluate treatment is a clinical trial; however, the difficulty in patient recruitment could act as a determinant. It is evident from the registry data that very few...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2022-03-01
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| Series: | Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1319016422000081 |
| _version_ | 1818755786060333056 |
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| author | Khaled Elshammaa Nouran Hamza Emad Elkholy Ahmad Mahrous Mohamed Hassan Elnaem Mahmoud E Elrggal |
| author_facet | Khaled Elshammaa Nouran Hamza Emad Elkholy Ahmad Mahrous Mohamed Hassan Elnaem Mahmoud E Elrggal |
| author_sort | Khaled Elshammaa |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background: Pharmaceutical firms are striving to find potential treatments to prevent and treat COVID-19. One of the gold standards to evaluate treatment is a clinical trial; however, the difficulty in patient recruitment could act as a determinant. It is evident from the registry data that very few studies have been conducted involving the population of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Aim: To document knowledge, perception, and attitude of the public from Two large countries in the MENA region (Egypt and Saudi Arabia) towards participation in clinical trials focused on evaluating potential COVID-19 treatments. Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted that used a snowball sampling strategy for recruitment. General population 18 years old or older, who lived in Saudi Arabia or Egypt were invited. The survey was adopted from literature and was approved by an ethics committee. Results: Out of 800 participants in the survey, 407 participants were from Egypt, and 393 were from Saudi Arabia. Most participants (48%) had moderate knowledge, i.e., >60% <80%. The results revealed poor attitude (88.5%) and poor perceptions (45.8%) regarding participation in COVID-19 clinical trials. Education and residence were identified as determinants of participants’ knowledge, attitude, and perceptions. Participants' knowledge and understanding of COVID-19 trials did not impact their willingness to participate. This coupled with a poor attitude and perception among the masses drastically affects any potential for participation in future clinical trials. Conclusion: A relatively small proportion of participants were interested in enrolling in COVID-19 studies. Increased collective engagement through social media and healthcare professionals can help improve attitudes and perceptions toward trial participation. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-18T05:44:40Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-19dc1ac4c8e2471ba7746aad44891dc6 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1319-0164 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-18T05:44:40Z |
| publishDate | 2022-03-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-19dc1ac4c8e2471ba7746aad44891dc62022-12-21T21:19:05ZengElsevierSaudi Pharmaceutical Journal1319-01642022-03-01303283290Knowledge, attitude, and perception of public about participation in COVID-19 clinical trials: A study from Egypt and Saudi ArabiaKhaled Elshammaa0Nouran Hamza1Emad Elkholy2Ahmad Mahrous3Mohamed Hassan Elnaem4Mahmoud E Elrggal5Pharmaceutical Service Administration, King Abdullah Medical City, Saudi Arabia; Corresponding author at: Pharmaceutical Service Administration, King Abdullah Medical City Building, Al Aziziyah District, 57657, Makkah 21955, Saudi Arabia.CEO, Medical Agency for Research and Statistics, EgyptPharmaceutical Service Administration, King Abdullah Medical City, Saudi ArabiaClinical Pharmacy Department, Faculty of Pharmacy, Umm Al Qura University, Saudi ArabiaDepartment of Pharmacy Practice, Faculty of Pharmacy, International Islamic University Malaysia, Kuantan, Pahang, MalaysiaClinical Pharmacy Department, Faculty of Pharmacy, Umm Al Qura University, Saudi ArabiaBackground: Pharmaceutical firms are striving to find potential treatments to prevent and treat COVID-19. One of the gold standards to evaluate treatment is a clinical trial; however, the difficulty in patient recruitment could act as a determinant. It is evident from the registry data that very few studies have been conducted involving the population of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Aim: To document knowledge, perception, and attitude of the public from Two large countries in the MENA region (Egypt and Saudi Arabia) towards participation in clinical trials focused on evaluating potential COVID-19 treatments. Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted that used a snowball sampling strategy for recruitment. General population 18 years old or older, who lived in Saudi Arabia or Egypt were invited. The survey was adopted from literature and was approved by an ethics committee. Results: Out of 800 participants in the survey, 407 participants were from Egypt, and 393 were from Saudi Arabia. Most participants (48%) had moderate knowledge, i.e., >60% <80%. The results revealed poor attitude (88.5%) and poor perceptions (45.8%) regarding participation in COVID-19 clinical trials. Education and residence were identified as determinants of participants’ knowledge, attitude, and perceptions. Participants' knowledge and understanding of COVID-19 trials did not impact their willingness to participate. This coupled with a poor attitude and perception among the masses drastically affects any potential for participation in future clinical trials. Conclusion: A relatively small proportion of participants were interested in enrolling in COVID-19 studies. Increased collective engagement through social media and healthcare professionals can help improve attitudes and perceptions toward trial participation.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1319016422000081KnowledgePublic opinionPerceptionCOVID-19Patient participation |
| spellingShingle | Khaled Elshammaa Nouran Hamza Emad Elkholy Ahmad Mahrous Mohamed Hassan Elnaem Mahmoud E Elrggal Knowledge, attitude, and perception of public about participation in COVID-19 clinical trials: A study from Egypt and Saudi Arabia Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal Knowledge Public opinion Perception COVID-19 Patient participation |
| title | Knowledge, attitude, and perception of public about participation in COVID-19 clinical trials: A study from Egypt and Saudi Arabia |
| title_full | Knowledge, attitude, and perception of public about participation in COVID-19 clinical trials: A study from Egypt and Saudi Arabia |
| title_fullStr | Knowledge, attitude, and perception of public about participation in COVID-19 clinical trials: A study from Egypt and Saudi Arabia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Knowledge, attitude, and perception of public about participation in COVID-19 clinical trials: A study from Egypt and Saudi Arabia |
| title_short | Knowledge, attitude, and perception of public about participation in COVID-19 clinical trials: A study from Egypt and Saudi Arabia |
| title_sort | knowledge attitude and perception of public about participation in covid 19 clinical trials a study from egypt and saudi arabia |
| topic | Knowledge Public opinion Perception COVID-19 Patient participation |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1319016422000081 |
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