Objective
Objective of the study was to evaluate the public perception and acceptance of community pharmacists in providing mental health support in Saudi Arabia during COVID-19.
Methods
An online questionnaire-based cross-sectional study was carried out among the general public (aged 15 years or above) of Saudi Arabia during March-April 2020 using QuestionPro platform. The validated questionnaire was bilingual (English and Arabic), simple, detailed, and relevant to obtain focused responses from participants. Importantly, an item related to an agreement on a statement “Pharmacist can counsel people on psychological issues” was included on a five-point Likert scale. The survey link was shared across multiple social media platforms.
Results
A total of 773 participants completed the survey. The majority were female (65.2%) and youngsters (48.1%). Nearly half of the participants disagreed, while 19% agreed that pharmacists could provide support on psychological issues. Factors such as age, employment status, and the management of the psychological issues during the pandemic were significantly associated with the acceptance of community pharmacists’ role in providing mental health services (p