Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices (KAP) of Professional Healthcare Workers Towards the Rational Use of Medicines in Lashkar Gah, Afghanistan
Keywords: Antimicrobial resistance, Healthcare workers, Medication safety, Patient education, Rational medicine use
Abdul Bari Hejran
Abstract
Rational medicine use (RMU) is a fundamental component of effective healthcare systems, ensuring that patients receive the right medicines, in the right dose, at the right time, and at an affordable cost, with minimal risks. Any deviation from RMU can lead to adverse drug reactions, antimicrobial resistance, and increased healthcare costs issues that are particularly severe in low-resource settings such as Afghanistan. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of professional healthcare workers (HCWs) towards RMU in Lashkar Gah, Afghanistan, through the evaluation of clinical practices, guideline adherence, perceived barriers, and their feedback on improving them. A cross-sectional survey was conducted between June and August 2025 in seven private hospitals and one public clinic. A structured 20-item questionnaire was administered to 136 HCWs, including physicians, pharmacists, nurses, and other cadres, selected through stratified random samplings to ensure balanced representation. Socio-demographic factors were analyzed as independent predictors, while KAP regarding RMU were treated as dependent variables. The data were analyzed using the IBM SPSS Statistics (Version 26). Results indicate strong professional commitment among HCWs: 73.5% always counselled patients, 89% consistently followed prescribing guidelines, and 83.8% regularly updated their knowledge. Nevertheless, 61% reported insufficient training, 45.5% encountered counterfeit medicines, and 68.4% cited excessive workload as major barriers. Encouragingly, 85.9% recognized patient education as highly effective, and 86.8% supported standardized treatment protocols to enhance patient safety. This research provides new insights into RMU practices in Lashkar Gah, Afghanistan and supports targeted training, policy reform, and system-level improvements to strengthen rational prescribing and administration.
