title: Determinants of physicians' medication prescribing behaviour in primary care in Riyadh City, Saudi Arabia.
abstract: This study in Saudi Arabia explored the determinants of physicians' prescribing behaviour in primary care in Riyadh city. A self-administered questionnaire designed to explore factors influencing prescribing (sociodemographic factors; practice setting; continuing education; access to educational materials; pharmaceutical company representatives; and patient factors) was completed by 87 PHC physicians. A factor analysis of 56 variables extracted 7 factors that explained 46% of the variance. Of these, 4 components positively related to perceived good prescribing behaviour could be summarized as: clinical experience of physicians; use of educational materials for continuous updating of medical knowledge; enhanced levels of continuing medical education and willingness to involve patients in decision-making; and working as a team using pharmacists for consultation and emphasizing the role of medical education. The other 3 factors derived from the analysis were less easy to interpret and may have been statistical anomalies (or measurement errors).
authors: Department of Medical Education, College of Medicine, King Abdulaziz Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors: M A
authors: MA
authors: Magzoub
authors: Y
authors: Y
authors: Neyaz
authors: T
authors: T
authors: Khoja
authors: N A
authors: NA
authors: Qureshi
authors: A
authors: A
authors: Haycox
authors: T
authors: T
authors: Walley
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002983:Clinical Competence; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010820:Physicians / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'; D011320:Primary Health Care; D012529:Saudi Arabia; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires