Mustafa, Zia UlIqbal, ShahidAsif, Hafiz RahilSalman, MuhammadJabbar, SeharMallhi, Tauqeer HussainKhan, Yusra HabibSono, Tiyani MiltaSchellack, NatalieMeyer, Johanna C.Godman, Brian2023-09-272023-09-272023-02Mustafa, Z.U.; Iqbal, S.; Asif, H.R.; Salman, M.; Jabbar, S.; Mallhi, T.H.; Khan, Y.H.; Sono, T.M.; Schellack, N.; Meyer, J.C.; et al. Knowledge, Attitude and Practices of Self-Medication Including Antibiotics among Health Care Professionals during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Pakistan: Findings and Implications. Antibiotics 2023, 12, 481. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12030481.2079-6382 (online)10.3390/antibiotics12030481http://hdl.handle.net/2263/92436Since the emergence of COVID-19, several different medicines including antimicrobials have been administered to patients to treat COVID-19. This is despite limited evidence of the effectiveness of many of these, fueled by misinformation. These utilization patterns have resulted in concerns for patients’ safety and a rise in antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Healthcare workers (HCWs) were required to serve in high-risk areas throughout the pandemic. Consequently, they may be inclined towards self-medication. However, they have a responsibility to ensure any medicines recommended or prescribed for the management of patients with COVID-19 are evidence-based. However, this is not always the case. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among HCWs in six districts of the Punjab to assess their knowledge, attitude and practices of self-medication during the ongoing pandemic. This included HCWs working a range of public sector hospitals in the Punjab Province. A total of 1173 HCWs were included in the final analysis. The majority of HCWs possessed good knowledge regarding self-medication and good attitudes. However, 60% were practicing self-medication amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The most frequent medicines consumed by the HCWs under self-medication were antipyretics (100%), antibiotics (80.4%) and vitamins (59.9%). Azithromycin was the most commonly purchase antibiotic (35.1%). In conclusion, HCWs possess good knowledge of, and attitude regarding, medicines they purchased. However, there are concerns that high rates of purchasing antibiotics, especially “Watch” antibiotics, for self-medication may enhance AMR. This needs addressing.en© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/).HospitalsSelf-medicationAntibioticsPakistanAWaRe classificationCOVID-19 pandemicCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)Healthcare workers (HCW)Antimicrobial resistance (AMR)Article