Self-medication

ABSTRACTEverybody wants to get success in their life but on the cost of their health. Due to that the chances of irrationality of drugs increase in which self-medication is one of the major cause. The basic principle for the rational use of drug is better supply of drugs, better prescribing and lower costs for health care. When the basic principle of rational use of drugs is not fulfill it leads to irrationality which further leads to adverse effects and toxicity. There are number of factors which contributes to irrationality either they are inter-related to each other or they directly have affects and it may cause some effects on health and economic consequences. There is a cycle for rational use of medicine which help the clinician to prescribe the appropriate drug for appropriate disease condition, if each step is followed appropriately the irrationality improves. The concept of “rational use of medicine” can at times be confusing and not easily appreciated by patients, healthcare providers, policy makers, or the public, all of whom needs to collaborate effectively to address this challenge and the policy makers should be need to update with current trends.  Keywords: Irrational, Rational, Self-medication

Self-medication is an issue of great concern particularly in developing countries like Nigeria where there is unrestricted access to drugs, including prescription only medicines. There is paucity of data on self-medication among pharmacy undergraduates in Nigeria. The aim of this descriptive cross sectional study was to assess the prevalence of self-medication among undergraduate pharmacy students of the University of Uyo, Nigeria. The study was carried out between October and November, 2015, using self-administered questionnaires, which were collected in the various classes after completion. Data were analyzed using Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS) Version 16.0.  The prevalence of self-medication in this study was 82.0% with most frequently reported illness being fever/malaria (33.2%). The major reasons for self-medication were mildness of the disease (48.2%) and being knowledgeable about drugs (22.5%). Analgesics (70.2%) and antibiotics (61.9%) were the two most frequently used classes of medications, most of which were obtained from pharmacy outlets (60.9%). Academic knowledge (24.7%) was the most frequently reported source of drug information for self-medication in this study. The prevalence of self-medication among undergraduate Pharmacy students of the University of Uyo was high. No demographic characteristic was found to affect self-medication practice. In other to reduce the practice of self-medication among Pharmacy undergraduates and hence minimize its attendant negative effects, efforts to promote responsible self-medication and rational drug use should be intensified in Schools of Pharmacy.