Evaluation of patient understanding of pharmaceutical pictograms for tuberculosis treatment

Background: Pharmaceuticalpictograms can be used to help tuberculosis patients understand treatment information, especially those with low reading skills.Objective: This study aimed to analyzethe guessability score and the level of understanding of pharmaceutical pictograms related to the use of TB drugs.Method: This was an observational study with a cross-sectional design. The sample used was 96 TB patients who were actively undergoing treatment.The guessability score and level of understanding were analyzed descriptively, while the relationship between socio-demographic characteristics and the level of understanding of pharmaceutical pictograms was analyzed using the Chi-square test.Results: The results showed that theguessability score of 23 pictograms tested on respondents varied greatly, with a score range of 29.2%–99%. Meanwhile,the level of respondents' understanding of pharmaceutical pictograms related to TB treatment wasin the "fair" category. The Chi-square test showed a significant relationship between the level of respondents’ education and theirunderstanding of pharmaceutical pictograms.Conclusion:The findingsofthis study demonstratedthat not all pictogram images were simple for respondentstounderstand. It is necessary to choose pictogram images that are easy for respondents to understand or redesign pictogram images so that they can be used to improvethe effectiveness of drug information delivery to patients