ASSESSMENT OF THE PERCEPTION AND SATISFACTION OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC OF THE NORTHERN BORDER REGION OF SAUDI ARABIA TOWARDS THE RESPONSIBILITIES AND SERVICES PROVIDED BY THE PHARMACISTS

The objective of this study was to assess the general public's perception and satisfaction on the roles, responsibilities and services provided by pharmacists in the Northern Border Region of Saudi Arabia. This cross-sectional study using a pretested and structured questionnaire was carried out from October 1, 2016 to January 31, 2017 among the general public (N = 600) of the Northern Border Region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The questionnaire was developed according to the scientific literature published worldwide. The questionnaire included questions related to the demographics of the participants, perception related questions and satisfaction related questions. A total of 600 participants were studied in this study. It was observed that the participants had a good level of perception regarding the roles and responsibilities of the pharmacists. The level of satisfaction with the services provided by the pharmacists was moderate to good. It was observed that about 34% of the population were not interested in discussing matters related to drugs with their pharmacist; about 50% of the participants consider a pharmacist a mere vendor / dispenser of drugs; and about 20% of the population did not provide the response with surety for questions related to perception and satisfaction. It has been concluded that the public of the Northern Border Region of Saudi Arabia has a good level of perception regarding the roles and responsibilities of the pharmacists. The level of satisfaction with the services provided by the pharmacists was moderate to good, and needs improvement. There is a need to organize pharmacy related seminars / workshops / awareness programs to improve the knowledge of the public of the studied region with respect to the perception of the pharmacy profession. Keywords: Perception, satisfaction, general public, Saudi Arabia, pharmacist