Self-medication tendencies of patients visiting out-patient departments of Government homoeopathic medical colleges and hospitals in West Bengal, India

Authors

  • Munmun Koley Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy, Govt. of India
  • Subhranil Saha Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy, Govt. of India
  • Aloke Ghosh Midnapore Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Govt. of West Bengal
  • Subhasish Ganguly Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital
  • Jogendra Singh Arya Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy, Govt. of India
  • Gurudev Choubey Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy, Govt. of India

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.51910/ijhdr.v12i45.637

Keywords:

Self-medication, Over-the-counter drugs, Health services, Health-seeking behavior, India

Abstract

Background and aims: Self-medication is mostly prevalent in the low- and middle-income population segments of developing countries, thus reflecting the status of health services. Self-medication has frequently been held responsible for inducing drug resistance, higher cost of further treatment, and other complications. The World Health Organization (WHO) promotes self-medication in rural and remote areas to reduce the burden of health services. In this study, the researchers sought to establish the prevalence, consequences, and causes of self-medication. Methods: Multicenter, institution-based, cross-sectional study conducted with 456 participants in May, 2013 at the outpatient clinics of 2 Government homeopathic medical colleges in West Bengal, India. A pilot-tested structured questionnaire consisting of 12 self-administered questions in local vernacular Bengali was used; 8 were close-ended questions providing multiple answer options, while 4 were open-ended. Results: Overall, 12.7% of interviewees admitted to perform self-medication; 57.7% and 66.0% had appropriate knowledge of the medicines and dose regimens, respectively. Females (64.3%) predominated and self-medication was mostly found in age range 31-45 years old (32.5%). Conventional Western medicine (82.2%) was most preferred therapy, and fever (35.7%), hyperacidity (25.4%) and loose stool (24.3%) the most frequently reported complaints. The main causes for self-medication were feeling no need to consult doctor (32.5%), busy schedule (16.4%), family members advice (16.0%), over-the-counter (OTC) availability of medicines without prescription (12.5%), direct consumer pharmaceutical advertisement (12.1%), and high expenditure in private institutes (10.1%). The chi-square distribution of determinants across the two samples differed significantly. The tendency increased proportionately with literacy (Yates’ χ2=175.731; p=0.000) and poverty (Yates’ χ2=426.817; p=0.000). Conclusion: The results reflect the knowledge, attitude, and practice of self-medication among the participants. Further studies should be undertaken in larger samples and different populations.

Author Biographies

Munmun Koley, Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy, Govt. of India

Senior Research Fellow, Clinical Research Unit (Homeopathy), Siliguri, Under CCRH, Govt. of India

Subhranil Saha, Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy, Govt. of India

Senior Research Fellow, Clinical Research Unit (Homeopathy), Siliguri, Under CCRH, Govt. of India

Aloke Ghosh, Midnapore Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Govt. of West Bengal

Lecturer, Dept. of Organon of Medicine and Homeopathic Philosophy, Midnapore Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Govt. of West Bengal

Subhasish Ganguly, Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital

Lecturer, Dept. of Organon of Medicine and Homeopathic Philosophy, Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital

Jogendra Singh Arya, Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy, Govt. of India

Scientist 4, Clinical Research Unit (Homeopathy), Siliguri, Under CCRH, Govt. of India

Gurudev Choubey, Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy, Govt. of India

Scientist 1, Clinical Research Unit (Homeopathy), Siliguri, Under CCRH, Govt. of India

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Published

2021-12-02

How to Cite

Koley, M., Saha, S., Ghosh, A., Ganguly, S., Arya, J. S., & Choubey, G. (2021). Self-medication tendencies of patients visiting out-patient departments of Government homoeopathic medical colleges and hospitals in West Bengal, India. International Journal of High Dilution Research - ISSN 1982-6206, 12(45), 178–189. https://doi.org/10.51910/ijhdr.v12i45.637

Issue

Section

Sociological Research

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