Abstract:
Improper pharmaceutical waste management is one of the reasons for environmental
hazards and affects all living organisms in the world. Pharmacy working personnel’s knowledge on
pharmaceutical waste management plays important roles in the provision of proper wastage
management to secure the ecosystem in the country. Aim of the study was to assess the knowledge
of pharmaceutical wastage management and influence of socio-demographic and work-related
factors among personals working at private pharmacies in Jaffna Municipality Area, Sri Lanka. A
descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in private pharmacies. Pre-tested and validated self-
administered questionnaire was used to collect data. Knowledge level of participants was categorized
as good, adequate and poor. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 23. Chi- square test was
performed to analyze the variable and 95% confidence interval was set for the test and results were
significant if p value <0.05. Respondent rate of pharmacy personnel was 78.71% (n = 122) and most
of them were female 59% (n = 72). Majority of the participants (67.2%, n = 82) were pharmacy
assistants. In this study, most participants (76.2%, n = 93) had poor knowledge on pharmaceutical
waste management. 10.7% (n = 13) had good knowledge and 13.1% (n = 16) had adequate
knowledge. Age, marital status, educational level, position in the pharmacy and work experience (p<
0.001) had statistically significant influence on level of knowledge. Continuous education programs
should be initiated and periodically conducted among pharmacy personnel to improve knowledge of
pharmaceutical waste management. Existing guidelines should be strengthened and monitored for
implementation by regulatory authorities.
