Volume 24, Issue 106, November - December, 2020

Evaluation of physicians’ practices, attitude and perceptions towards biosimilars usage among patients

Abdullah K.Alahmari¹, Ziyad S. Almalki¹, Muhammad Shahid Iqbal^1♦, Manal A. Alossaimi², Alwaleed Mohammed Lasaf¹, Bandar Abdullah Almawash¹, Fayez Hamoud Aldossary¹, Aliyah Mohammed Marghalani³, Yazeed Abdulaziz Alsubaihi¹

¹Department of Clinical Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz University, Al-kharj, 11942, Saudi Arabia.
²Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, College of Pharmacy, Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 173, Al-Kharj, 11942, Saudi Arabia
³College of Pharmacy, Taif University, P.O Box 11099, Taif 21944, Saudi Arabia

^♦Corresponding author
Department of Clinical Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz University, Al-kharj, 11942, Saudi Arabia. Email: m.javed@psau.edu.sa

ABSTRACT

Objective: This study evaluated the current practices, attitude and perceptions towards biosimilars among physicians in Saudi Arabia. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using the convenience sampling method to collect data among physicians in Saudi Arabia. Microsoft Excel and Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24.0 were used to analyze data using descriptive and inferential statistics. A p-value of <0.05 was considered to interpret the obtained results as statistically significant. Results: According to the findings of the study, most of the physicians had positive attitude and good perceptions about biosimilars usage, safety, efficacy and overall effectiveness. Among the study participants, some of the physicians were already practicing prescribing biosimilars to their patients. Statistically, a significant association (p-value <0.05) and positive correlation were also observed among attitude questions and perceptions of the physicians about overall biosimilars’ information and their efficacy and effectiveness. Conclusion: This study concluded that the studied physicians had positive attitude and good perceptions about biosimilars in Saudi Arabia.

Keywords: Biosimilars, physicians, practices, attitude, perception, Saudi Arabia

Medical Science, 2020, 24(106), 4410-4417

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