AIM: The study was planned with the aim of determining the rational drug use habits of individuals.
METHOD: The sample of this descriptive study was consisted of 382 individuals who admitted to five different family health centers in Istanbul. The centers were selected randomly between April and July 2012. Data were collected by using a structured questionnaire form including 26 questions about individuals' socio-demographic and rational drug use habits. After obtaining the permission from relevant institutions the researchers collected data by using face-to-face interviews. The data were analyzed by using numeric, percentage and correlation tests.
RESULTS: The mean age of individuals in the research sample was 41.3±15.3 years. In addition it was determined that 63.1% were female, 39.8 % were graduated from primary school, 48.4% of them had firstly applied to a health center in during disability and illness and 66.5% of them used drug after examining by a physician. Before starting the drug therapy, 70.2% of these individuals were informed about illness, 71.2% of them were informed about drugs content, 73.6% of them were informed about using drug, 63.6% of them were informed about duration of drug action, 70.4% of them were informed about drug side effects, and 57.9% of them were informed about non-pharmacological methods. However, 62.8% of the sample couldnt repeat this information, 67.0% of them interrupted their drug therapy believing that they healed, and 67.3% of them stocked their medication at home. In addition, it was found that advanced age and low levels of education were effective on adherence to rational drug use (p≤0.01).
CONCLUSION: In this study, it was determined that individuals awareness about rational drug use should be increased, particularly, the older ones and those with insufficient education level of individuals need more information about this condition.
Key words: Rational Drug Use, Individuals, Family Health Care Centers. Article Language: Turkish English
|
