Medication storage and self-medication behaviour amongst female students in Malaysia.
TLDR
Prevalence of medicine storage and self-medication practice is high among educated female students in USM and strict policies need to be implemented on the unrestricted availability of medicines so as to prevent the wastage of medicines.Abstract:
Objectives: The aims of this study are to determine the prevalence, attitudes and behaviours of medication storage and self-medication amongst female students at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM).Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted and cluster random sampling technique was used for respondent selection. A pre-piloted questionnaire was administered to female respondents so as to collect the data. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 12 and analysis was conducted using descriptive analysis procedures.Results: Of the 481 participants (mean age; SD was 22.1; 3.3), 93.1% (n=448) students stated that they stored medicine in their rooms, while 70.7% (n=340) stated that they stopped taking a prescribed medicine without consulting a doctor. The prevalence of self-medication was 80.9% (n=389). The most common reasons for self-medication were related to their knowledge of their ailment and its treatment (58.0%), 14.4% thought it saved time and 8.5% mentioned that medication given by provider was not effective. The most common symptoms were otorhinolaryngology problems (22.5%), followed by respiratory disease (19.6%), Gastro Intestinal Tract (GIT) disease (18.1%) and headache/fever (16.8%). Commonly used medicines were analgesics & antipyretics (30.2%), ear, nose & throat drugs (10.8%), vitamins & minerals (10.8%), GIT drugs (8.5%), anti-infections (7.3%) and herbal medicines (3.5%). Prevalence of medicine storage and self-medication practice is high among educated female students in USM.Conclusions: There is a need to educate the students to ensure safe practice by increasing their awareness. Strict policies need to be implemented on the unrestricted availability of medicines so as to prevent the wastage of medicines.read more
Citations
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Perceptions and practices of self-medication among medical students in coastal South India.
Nithin Kumar,Tanuj Kanchan,Bhaskaran Unnikrishnan,Rekha T,Prasanna Mithra,Vaman Kulkarni,Mohan Kumar Papanna,Ramesh Holla,Surabhi Uppal +8 more
TL;DR: The prevalence of self-medication among the medical students in South India was 78.6% and Antipyretics were most commonly self–medicated by the participants, indicating easy availability and accessibility to health care facilities remains the cornerstone for reducing the practice of self—medication.
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Self-medication practice in Ethiopia: a systematic review
TL;DR: Self-medication practice is prevalent in Ethiopia and varies in different populations and regions of the country, and special attention should be given to educating the public and health care providers on the types of illnesses that can be self-diagnosed and self-treated and thetypes of drugs to be used for self-medicated.
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Predictors of Self-Medication Behavior: A Systematic Review.
TL;DR: The observed diversity in the reported prevalence and reasons of self-medication among different sub-groups of populations and between developed and developing countries highlights the importance of explanatory behavioral chain analysis of self -medication in different population groups and countries.
Original Research Medication storage and self-medication behaviour amongst female students in Malaysia
TL;DR: In this article, a cross-sectional survey was conducted to determine the prevalence, attitudes and behaviours of medication storage and self-medication amongst female students at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM).
References
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Self-medication and non-doctor prescription practices in Pokhara valley, Western Nepal: a questionnaire-based study
TL;DR: Self-medication and non-doctor prescribing are common in the Pokhara valley, and in addition to allopathic drugs, herbal remedies were also commonly used for self-medications.
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Self-medication amongst university students of Karachi: prevalence, knowledge and attitudes.
Syed Nabeel Zafar,Reema Syed,Sana Waqar,Akbar Jaleel Zubairi,Talha Vaqar,Mehrine Shaikh,Wajeeha Yousaf,Saman Shahid,Sarah Saleem +8 more
TL;DR: Prevalence of self-medication is high in the educated youth, despite majority being aware of its harmful effects, and there is a need to educate the youth to ensure safe practices.
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Intervention research in rational use of drugs: a review.
TL;DR: It is revealed that commonly used interventions, such as an essential drug list and standard treatment guidelines, have rarely been systematically evaluated so far and the majority of intervention studies are focused on prescribers in a public health setting, while irrational use of drugs is also widespread in the private sector.
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Evaluation of the knowledge, attitude and practice of self-medication among first-year medical students.
TL;DR: Klassical knowledge about appropriate self-medication was poor, attitude towards self- medication was positive, and the practice of self-Medication was common and often inappropriate.
Journal ArticleDOI
Sociodemographic factors related to self-medication in Spain.
TL;DR: People over 40 years of age, people living alone, and students should be the priority target populations for public health education programs aimed at improving the quality of self-medication behavior.