Assessment of Knowledge and Attitude Regarding Lead Poisoning Among Pharmacists in Jordan

Lead is considered an environmental health hazard, as exposure to small amounts of lead can cause serious health issues. Great efforts are being made globally to raise awareness about lead poisoning and its prevention among health care professionals and communities. The level of knowledge of health care professionals about preventing lead poisoning remains unknown in developing countries. Pharmacists play an important role in increasing awareness due to their direct contact with the community. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the knowledge and attitudes towards lead poisoning among pharmacists in Jordan. A questionnaire regarding the knowledge and attitudes towards lead poisoning was conducted among pharmacy students and pharmacy graduates at Al-Zaytoonah University of Jordan. The mean score of the participants in the factual knowledge test, the Chicago Lead Knowledge Test (CLKT), was 10.9 out of 24, which revealed inadequate knowledge concerning lead poisoning. High percentage of the respondents (72.2%) believed lead poisoning to be a major concern, and 64.6% of the respondents showed interest in the topic of lead poisoning. The findings of this study highlight the need for increasing the knowledge of Jordanian pharmacists regarding the sources of lead poisoning and its prevention. Increasing awareness of pharmacists would enable them to educate the community on ways to recognize and prevent lead poisoning.