title: Consumer knowledge and perceptions about antibiotics and upper respiratory tract infections in a community pharmacy.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Overuse of antibiotics is a global concern and the World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned of relapsing to an era with no effective antibiotics. In Australia, various national consumer campaigns had been running since 2000, and the concern was prioritised in 2011, when the need for a national approach to address antibiotic resistance was identified.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to explore consumer attitudes and knowledge about (upper respiratory tract) infections, colds and flu, and antibiotics, and to identify factors contributing to antibiotic misuse which could be addressed by tailored patient counselling.
  
  
  METHODS
  A community pharmacy in an area of Brisbane, Australia.
  
  
  METHODS
  A self-administered anonymous questionnaire was distributed among pharmacy consumers. Perceptions of, and knowledge about antibiotics were measured using a 5-point Likert-type scale of agreement/disagreement.
  
  
  METHODS
  The proportion of self-diagnosers and non self-diagnosers who agreed/disagreed with the attitude statement, "I know that I need antibiotics before I visit my doctor"; and the proportion of mistaken and non-mistaken who agreed/disagreed with the statement, "I will get better faster if I take antibiotics when I have a cold or flu".
  
  
  RESULTS
  Over a third of the 252 participants believed that they would recover faster by taking antibiotics when suffering from a cold or flu, and nearly one-fifth felt that antibiotics would cure viral infections. More females (62.2 vs. 43.9 %) self-diagnosed (p = 0.002) although more males (42.1 vs. 30.8 %) were mistaken about the efficacy of antibiotics for treating colds and flus. Mistaken respondents were more likely than non-mistaken respondents to self-diagnose (p = 0.01).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study confirms a lack of knowledge among consumers about the efficacy of antibiotics in treating viral infections despite education campaigns. The findings strongly suggest there is a need for pharmacists and other health care professionals to elicit consumer beliefs and understanding about antibiotics and to tailor their advice appropriately.
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmacy, The University of Queensland, Woolloongabba, QLD, 4102, Australia. ian.fredericks@uqconnect.edu.au.
authors.forename: Ian
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4864-7105
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Fredericks
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmacy, The University of Queensland, Woolloongabba, QLD, 4102, Australia.
authors.forename: Samantha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hollingworth
authors.affiliation: School of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, 4072, Australia.
authors.forename: Alex
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pudmenzky
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmacy, The University of Queensland, Woolloongabba, QLD, 4102, Australia.
authors.forename: Laurence
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rossato
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmacy, The University of Queensland, Woolloongabba, QLD, 4102, Australia.
authors.forename: Shahzad
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Syed
authors.affiliation: Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Dentistry, James Cook University, Angus Smith Drive, Townsville, QLD, 4811, Australia.
authors.forename: Therése
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kairuz
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000188:drug therapy*; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010465:Perception; D010594:Pharmacies; D012141:Respiratory Tract Infections / Q000188:drug therapy*; D012737:Sex Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014777:Virus Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents
keywords: Antibiotics; Attitudes; Australia; Consumer attitudes; Health literacy; Knowledge; Patients; Pharmacists; Resistance; Upper respiratory tract infections