Table 2.

Table illustrating the results of the critical appraisal process including manuscript information, the number of and occupation of participants and their critical appraisal score, including justification for points lost

Manuscript			Interviews		Critical appraisal
References	First author	Main research area and setting	Number	Participants	CASP score	CASP points lost/unclear
[21]	Charani E	Development of stewardship programmes in different countries. (SSA: Burkina Faso)	52	Healthcare professionals (doctors and pharmacists)	7/9	No. 5: No clear description of interview technique No. 6: Lacking discussion of relationship between researcher and participants
[28]	Legenza L	Healthcare provider knowledge about Clostridium difficile infection in a South African hospital	26	Healthcare professionals (doctors, nurses and pharmacists)	8/9	No. 6: Lacking discussion of relationship between researchers and participants
[27]	Gebretekle GB	Implementation of antibiotic stewardship in an Ethiopian tertiary care hospital	35	Healthcare professionals (doctors, pharmacists)	8/9	No. 4: Subjective criteria for recruitment, focussing on prestige of job role
[32]	Mula CT	Workarounds and their perceived impact on antibiotic stewardship in a referral hospital in Malawi	13	Healthcare professionals (nurses)	7/9	No. 4: No discussion of recruitment criteria for interview No. 6: Lacking discussion of relationship between researchers and participants
[31]	Rout J	The role of ICU nurses in antimicrobial stewardship at a South African private hospital	17	Healthcare professionals (doctors, nurses and pharmacists in ICU/surgery)	8/9	No. 6: Lacking discussion of relationship between researchers and participants
[19]	Torres NF	Patterns of self-medication in Maputo city, Mozambique	49	Healthcare professionals (pharmacists) and pharmacy customers	9/9	No points lost
[24]	Agardh C	Using pharmacists and drugstore workers as sexual healthcare workers among MSM in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania	15	Drugstore customers (men who have sex with men)	9/9	No points lost
[29]	Asante KP	Knowledge of antibiotic resistance and prescription practices in the Brong Ahafo Region of Ghana	33	Healthcare professionals (doctors, physician assistants, nurses and community health officers)	8/9	No. 8: Brief description of data analysis technique for qualitative component
[20]	Gebretekle GB	Exploration of over-the-counter sales in community pharmacies in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia	5	Healthcare professionals (pharmacists)	7/9	No. 4: Recruitment sequential, may not have achieved full geographical coverage No. 5: Interview technique not discussed
[22]	Yantzi R	Antibiotic use for viral respiratory infection in rural southwestern Uganda	22	Healthcare professionals (clinical officers, nursing offices, nurses, laboratory staff, non-medical staff, public health professionals, village health team members)	6/9	No. 4: Recruitment strategy for non-host clinic participants unclear No. 5: Interview technique not discussed No. 6: Lacking discussion of relationship between researchers and participants
[23]	Watkins JA	Community perceptions of antibiotic usage in Mpumalanga province, South Africa	17	Community members randomly selected from a Health Demographic Surveillance site	9/9	No points lost
[25]	Foster EK	Patient knowledge of prescription medications and antibiotics in Blantyre, Malawi	54	Pharmacy customers at 5 randomly selected community pharmacies	8/9	No. 5: Interview technique/questions asked not discussed
[30]	Pearson M	Awareness of anti-microbial resistance in multiple low-income countries (SSA: Ethiopia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone)	244	Healthcare and veterinary professionals (doctors, dentists, nurses, pharmacists, educator, veterinarian)	9/9	No points lost
[26]	Dillip A	Factors influencing antibiotic dispensing in Tanzania	84	Healthcare professionals (pharmacy owners and dispensers)	9/9	No points lost