Abstract

ASSESSMENT OF KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND PRACTICES OF OVER-THE-COUNTER MEDICATIONS USE AMONG STUDENTS OF TERTIARY CARE TEACHING HOSPITAL

Mr. Yashwanth H. V.*, Mrs. Nagashree R., Dr. Mahendra Kumar B. J., Dr. Renukaradhya Chitti

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Over-the-counter (OTC) drugs are pharmaceuticals that can be bought straight from pharmacies or retailers. Self-medication can be dangerous because people may misdiagnose themselves, wait too long to get help from a doctor, take the wrong amount of medicine, have harmful side effects, combine drugs, or become addicted to them, which can hurt them mentally and physically. Aim: The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence, awareness, and practices regarding over-the-counter medicine usage among pharmacy, nursing, and natural science students at a tertiary care teaching hospital in Karnataka, India. Method: A prospective, cross-sectional questionnaire survey was conducted. IBM SPSS v27 and Chi-square tests were used to analyse data. Results: Among 200 participants, 81% of the respondents knew about OTC medicines and 83.5% of them expressed confidence in using them to treat common conditions. Over half (52%) said they self-medicated without seeing a doctor and pharmacy students (65% most likely to do so) (p = 0.010). A significant percentage (71%) stored OTC medicines at home and 70.5% said they used them after being given advice by friends or relatives. Those who had experienced adverse effects were 30.5% and those who had taken more than the recommended dose were 11.5%. Conclusion: OTC medicine is used by a large number of health science students, where the pharmacy students are the most frequent users although they have higher academic exposures. Obtained results have revealed the significance of special educational activities and the involvement of pharmacists in the process of rational use guidance.

Keywords: Over the counter medicine, self-medication, side effects, health science students.