Knowledge and attitudes of German and Swiss community pharmacists towards biologicals and biosimilars – a prospective survey before and after the COVID-19 pandemic
Abstract Background Knowledge, attitudes and substitution laws of biosimilars are not consistent across countries. Biosimilar acceptance among patients and healthcare professionals may be suffering from gaps in knowledge and understanding about biosimilars and their regulatory approval process. Phar...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2023-12-01
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| Series: | BMC Health Services Research |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-023-10475-x |
| _version_ | 1797377132126535680 |
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| author | Kirstin Messner Christiane Eickhoff Martin Schulz Samuel S. Allemann Isabelle Arnet |
| author_facet | Kirstin Messner Christiane Eickhoff Martin Schulz Samuel S. Allemann Isabelle Arnet |
| author_sort | Kirstin Messner |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Knowledge, attitudes and substitution laws of biosimilars are not consistent across countries. Biosimilar acceptance among patients and healthcare professionals may be suffering from gaps in knowledge and understanding about biosimilars and their regulatory approval process. Pharmacists' roles and responsibilities changed considerably during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, they might have gained new skills and self-confidence in counseling and substitution of biosimilars. Aims To examine and compare the knowledge, perceptions and information needs of German and Swiss pharmacists regarding original biologicals and biosimilars in 2020 and 2022. Methods We conducted an online survey among Swiss and German community pharmacies in February 2020 (before) and August 2022 (after the COVID-19 pandemic). Descriptive statistics were calculated and the Chi-Square test was used for comparisons among categorical variables. Results A total of 764 pharmacists took part in the survey (390 in 2020 and 374 in 2022) with comparable demographics. The frequency of dispensing biologicals remained similar between German and Swiss pharmacists in 2020 and 2022, but the Swiss dispensation of biosimilars increased significantly in 2022 compared to 2020. Concerning the understanding of the term biosimilars, knowledge remained moderate in both countries in both years. Participants were equally familiar with the term and most felt sufficiently informed. In both countries, substitution with a biosimilar showed the least confidence of all attitudes. A third of the participants indicated correct substitution rules in their country. In both years, around 85% of the participants were highly interested in additional training on this topic. Discussion/Conclusion The results indicate that similarities and differences between Germany and Switzerland regarding knowledge and attitudes towards biologicals and biosimilars remained unchanged before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. An influence of the pandemic is unlikely. There is still a clear lack of knowledge among community pharmacists on biosimilars, especially regarding the substitution rules. Due to a rising market with many benefits but also big challenges to overcome, the topic of biosimilars should receive more attention in the future. This requires additional training for pharmacists. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T19:48:20Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6772672e6c8641d699dcfd51e37bee2e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1472-6963 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T19:48:20Z |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Health Services Research |
| spelling | doaj.art-6772672e6c8641d699dcfd51e37bee2e2023-12-24T12:13:02ZengBMCBMC Health Services Research1472-69632023-12-0123111210.1186/s12913-023-10475-xKnowledge and attitudes of German and Swiss community pharmacists towards biologicals and biosimilars – a prospective survey before and after the COVID-19 pandemicKirstin Messner0Christiane Eickhoff1Martin Schulz2Samuel S. Allemann3Isabelle Arnet4Pharmaceutical Care Research Group, University of BaselDepartment of Medicine, ABDA – Federal Union of German Associations of PharmacistsDepartment of Medicine, ABDA – Federal Union of German Associations of PharmacistsPharmaceutical Care Research Group, University of BaselPharmaceutical Care Research Group, University of BaselAbstract Background Knowledge, attitudes and substitution laws of biosimilars are not consistent across countries. Biosimilar acceptance among patients and healthcare professionals may be suffering from gaps in knowledge and understanding about biosimilars and their regulatory approval process. Pharmacists' roles and responsibilities changed considerably during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, they might have gained new skills and self-confidence in counseling and substitution of biosimilars. Aims To examine and compare the knowledge, perceptions and information needs of German and Swiss pharmacists regarding original biologicals and biosimilars in 2020 and 2022. Methods We conducted an online survey among Swiss and German community pharmacies in February 2020 (before) and August 2022 (after the COVID-19 pandemic). Descriptive statistics were calculated and the Chi-Square test was used for comparisons among categorical variables. Results A total of 764 pharmacists took part in the survey (390 in 2020 and 374 in 2022) with comparable demographics. The frequency of dispensing biologicals remained similar between German and Swiss pharmacists in 2020 and 2022, but the Swiss dispensation of biosimilars increased significantly in 2022 compared to 2020. Concerning the understanding of the term biosimilars, knowledge remained moderate in both countries in both years. Participants were equally familiar with the term and most felt sufficiently informed. In both countries, substitution with a biosimilar showed the least confidence of all attitudes. A third of the participants indicated correct substitution rules in their country. In both years, around 85% of the participants were highly interested in additional training on this topic. Discussion/Conclusion The results indicate that similarities and differences between Germany and Switzerland regarding knowledge and attitudes towards biologicals and biosimilars remained unchanged before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. An influence of the pandemic is unlikely. There is still a clear lack of knowledge among community pharmacists on biosimilars, especially regarding the substitution rules. Due to a rising market with many benefits but also big challenges to overcome, the topic of biosimilars should receive more attention in the future. This requires additional training for pharmacists.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-023-10475-xBiologicalBiosimilarsSurveyCommunity pharmacyKnowledgeAttitudes |
| spellingShingle | Kirstin Messner Christiane Eickhoff Martin Schulz Samuel S. Allemann Isabelle Arnet Knowledge and attitudes of German and Swiss community pharmacists towards biologicals and biosimilars – a prospective survey before and after the COVID-19 pandemic BMC Health Services Research Biological Biosimilars Survey Community pharmacy Knowledge Attitudes |
| title | Knowledge and attitudes of German and Swiss community pharmacists towards biologicals and biosimilars – a prospective survey before and after the COVID-19 pandemic |
| title_full | Knowledge and attitudes of German and Swiss community pharmacists towards biologicals and biosimilars – a prospective survey before and after the COVID-19 pandemic |
| title_fullStr | Knowledge and attitudes of German and Swiss community pharmacists towards biologicals and biosimilars – a prospective survey before and after the COVID-19 pandemic |
| title_full_unstemmed | Knowledge and attitudes of German and Swiss community pharmacists towards biologicals and biosimilars – a prospective survey before and after the COVID-19 pandemic |
| title_short | Knowledge and attitudes of German and Swiss community pharmacists towards biologicals and biosimilars – a prospective survey before and after the COVID-19 pandemic |
| title_sort | knowledge and attitudes of german and swiss community pharmacists towards biologicals and biosimilars a prospective survey before and after the covid 19 pandemic |
| topic | Biological Biosimilars Survey Community pharmacy Knowledge Attitudes |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-023-10475-x |
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