• Melda Bahap, Emre Kara, Cagla Sonmezer Meliha M https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6657-1779 Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Hacett, Ahmet Cagkan Inkaya, Duygu Aydin-Hakli, Serhat Unal, and Kutay Demirkan.
• Department of Clinical Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey.
• Int. J. Clin. Pract. 2021 Apr 1; 75 (4): e13952.

ObjectiveLack of knowledge/awareness of people living with hepatitis B (PLH) often leads to misinformation and stigmatisation. This study aimed to assess the contribution of the clinical pharmacist (CP)-led education on knowledge of PLH about their disease.MethodsThis prospective, cross-sectional study was carried out between 1 October 2017 and 1 April 2018, at infectious disease and gastroenterology outpatient clinics in a university hospital. All PLH were interviewed face-to-face by a CP and a questionnaire about hepatitis B virus (HBV) knowledge was applied both at the beginning of the study (first interview) and 3 months later (second interview). Correct information was provided verbally to the patients by the CP concerning their incorrect answers during the first interview. A 10% increase in the number of correct answers was targeted for the second interview.ResultsA total of 147 PLH with a mean age of 43.05 ± 13.25 years were included in the study (55.8% female). In the first interview, the mean (±standard deviation) number of correct answers was 35.53 ± 9.15 out of 51 questions. In the second interview, correct answers were 48.67 ± 2.74 with an increase of 25.8% (P < .001). In the first interview, the number of correct answers was higher for the following groups: 20-39 age group, people with monthly income of >1081 $ and university graduates. The number of correct answers to all questions but one was elevated (P < .001) in the second interview. Answers to the question "there is a carrier state in chronic hepatitis B (CHB)" did not change (P = .125).ConclusionSignificant improvement was observed in the correct answer rate after CP's contribution, therefore as a team member, CP has an important role in improving patients' knowledge and attitude towards HBV infection.© 2020 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

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