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ABSTRACT
Background: Antimicrobial resistance has become a serious global problem. A potential post-antibiotic era is threatening present and future medical advances. In Nigeria, the usage of antibiotic is unnecessarily high and due to over exposure to these drugs, bacteria are developing resistance against these drugs. It is necessary to improve public awareness about the rational use of antibiotics in order to bring a curb the spread of antibiotics resistance. Therefore, the present study was undertaken to assess the existing knowledge, attitudes and practice related to antibiotic usage and antibiotics resistance among Pharmacy students in University of Benin. Methods: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was carried out among Pharmacy students. 249 students (males: 122, females: 127) participated in the study. Pretested questionnaire was distributed to the study subjects and the collected data was analyzed using IBM SPSS version 24. Descriptive analysis was employed and the results were expressed in frequencies and percentages. Findings: The response rate was 83%. The result showed an overall good knowledge of antibiotics use among the students (71.1% agreed that antibiotics are effective against bacteria), although students from Levels 3 to 6 have demonstrated a better knowledge on antibiotics and antibiotics resistance. The overall attitudes of the students towards antibiotics use was above average. Majority of the participants believed that it is not okay to use the same antibiotics from friends to treat infections. However, 55% of the students self-medicate. The practice is generally good. Majority (93.6%) of the student’s source antibiotics prior to use, from Pharmacy/Medical store. It was found that 82.3% (n= 204) of the respondents had heard about antibiotics resistance. Majority (55%, n= 137) of the participants reported that they are able to purchase antibiotics without a prescription. Majority of the students agreed that inappropriate antimicrobial use contributed to antimicrobial resistance and were aware of the implications. Conclusion: This study revealed good knowledge, positive attitudes and practice of Pharmacy students towards the use of antibiotics and antibiotics resistance and they improve progressively from lower to higher levels
