title: Awareness and Knowledge of Autism Spectrum Disorders Among Pharmacists: A Cross-Sectional Study in Palestinian Pharmacy Practice.
abstract: Pharmacists are trusted and easily accessible healthcare providers. We assessed awareness and knowledge of symptoms, etiology, and treatment of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) among pharmacists practicing in Palestine. The pharmacists reported low familiarity with ASDs. The median score on the 12-item knowledge section was 50.0% with an interquartile range of 16.7%. Having course(s) or lecture(s) on ASDs during pharmacy degree program was significantly associated with familiarity (p value <0.001), knowledge (p value <0.001), and confidence (p value <0.05) scores. Nearly 62% of the pharmacists reported as not feeling confident enough in their ability to counsel parents about medications used for their children with ASDs and their side effects. This study revealed gaps in awareness and knowledge of ASDs among pharmacists.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, An-Najah National University, New Campus, Building: 19, Office: 1340, P.O. Box 7, Nablus, Palestine. ramzi_shawahna@hotmail.com.|An-Najah BioSciences Unit, Centre for Poisons Control, Chemical and Biological Analyses, An-Najah National University, Nablus, Palestine. ramzi_shawahna@hotmail.com.|Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, An-Najah National University, Nablus, Palestine. ramzi_shawahna@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Ramzi
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Shawahna
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, An-Najah National University, Nablus, Palestine.
authors.forename: Basel
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Fahed
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, An-Najah National University, Nablus, Palestine.
authors.forename: Dana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Qadri
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, An-Najah National University, Nablus, Palestine.
authors.forename: Lamees
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sharawi
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, An-Najah National University, Nablus, Palestine.
authors.forename: Mai
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Soroghli
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, An-Najah National University, Nablus, Palestine.
authors.forename: Maen
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dweik
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D018912:Arabs; D000067877:Autism Spectrum Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D001364:Awareness; D002648:Child; D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards; D003157:Community Pharmacy Services / Q000592:standards*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D010595:Pharmacists / Q000592:standards*
keywords: Autism spectrum disorders; Awareness; Knowledge; Palestine; Pharmacists