Features of assistant doctors' rational drug use and patient-centered approach and investigation of the effect of patient-centered approach on rational drug use

Rational drug use (RDU) is the ability to provide the most appropriate drug, at the appropriate time and dose, at an affordable cost and easily. Patient-Centered Approach (PCA), on the other hand is an approach that is respectful and sensitive to the values, needs, and individual preferences of the person, and that allows patient values and thoughts to guide all clinical decisions. This study was carried out to investigate the RDU and PCA characteristics of resident physicians working at Fırat University Hospital and the effect of PCA on RDU. The population of the descriptive-cross-sectional study consisted of assistant physicians working at the Faculty of Medicine of Elazig Fırat University. Without using any sampling method, 182 assistant physicians working between November 2020 and April 2021, who volunteered to participate in the study were included. The Patient Physician Orientation Scale (PPOS) was applied to the participants in order to evaluate their sociodemographic characteristics and their knowledge and attitudes about RDU, with a questionnaire consisting of 32 questions. Our study of the resident physicians participating in 53.3% (n=97) were male and 69.4% (n=126) were from internal medicine branches. A statistically significant relationship was found between the time physicians spared for their patients and gender, residency years, years of practice, and duration of work before residency (p<0.05). Physicians with less prescribing rate and who reported that they did not use ready-made prescriptions for common diseases were found to have higher positive attitudes towards RDU (p<0.05). The mean total score of the participants' PPOS was 48.5±7.3. A significant correlation was found between physicians' PPOS score and age years of residency, time passed after graduation and the number of patients cared for daily (p<0.05). Physicians with a positive attitude towards RDU had a higher mean score of PPOS. As a result, it was determined that patient centered resident physicians had more positive RDU attitudes. For this reason, training and studies related to both RDU and PCA should be supported and increased. Keywords: Rational drug use, patient centered approach, resident physician, education.