Self-Medication - : A Growing Global Concern

SELF-MEDICATION –
A GROWING GLOBAL CONCERN

Introduction
Self-medication is a global phenomenon and

potential contributor to human pathogen
resistance to antibiotics. The adverse
consequences of such practices should always
be emphasized to the community and steps to
curb it.
Rampant irrational use of antimicrobials without
medical guidance may result in greater
probability of inappropriate, incorrect, or undue
therapy, missed diagnosis, delays in appropriate
treatment, pathogen resistance and increased
morbidity.
Definition
Generally speaking, self-medication is defined as

"the use of drugs to treat self-diagnosed disorders or
symptoms, or the intermittent or continued use of a
prescribed drug for chronic or recurrent disease or
symptoms.
In other words self-medication has traditionally been
defined as “the taking of drugs, herbs or home
remedies on one's own initiative, or on the advice of
another person, without consulting a doctor.
Statistics
Studies carried out on self-medication states that it is very

common practice, especially in economically deprived Stats
communities.
Now-a-days health care services are getting costlier and in
developing countries health care facilities are not available.
Hence, that time self-medication becomes an obvious choice
of healthcare service.
Furthermore, it has been noted that purchase of drugs and
many drugs that can only be purchased with prescription in
developed countries are OTC in developing countries.
Why do People Use Self-Medication?
Modern consumers (patients) wish to take a greater role in

the maintenance of their own health and are often
competent to manage (uncomplicated) chronic and
recurrent illnesses (not merely short-term symptoms) after
proper medical diagnosis and with only occasional
professional advice, e.g. use of histamine H2-receptor
blocker, topical corticosteroid, antifungal and oral
contraceptive.
They are understandably unwilling to submit to the
inconvenience of visiting a doctor for what they rightly feel
they can manage for themselves, given adequate
information.
Why do People Use Self-Medication?
Self-medication is very common and a number of

reasons could be enumerated for it. Some of them
include:
• Urge of self-care
• Feeling of sympathy toward family members in
sickness
• Lack of time
• Lack of health services
• Financial constraint
• Ignorance, misbelieves, extensive advertisement
and availability of drugs in other than drug
shops.
Factors Influencing Self-Medication
Self-medication is influenced by many factors

such as:
• Education
• Family
• Society
• Law
• Availability of drugs
• Exposure to advertisements.
Potential Benefits
Potential benefits (Individual level)

• An active role in his or her own health care
• Self-reliance in preventing or relieving minor
symptoms or conditions
• Education opportunities on specific health issues
(i.e. stop smoking aids and products to treat
heartburn)
• Convenience
• Economy, particularly since medical
consultations will be reduced or avoided.
Potential Benefits
• At community level: Good self-medication can

also provide benefits such as:
• Saving scarce medical resources from being
wasted on minor conditions
• Lowering the costs of community funded health
care programs
• Reducing absenteeism from work due to minor
symptoms
• Reduce the pressure on medical services where
health care personnel are insufficient
• Increase the availability of health care to
populations living in rural or remote areas.
Potential Benefits
• Help to prevent and treat symptoms and

ailments that do not require a doctor.
• Hay fever, headache, indigestion, mouth
ulcer, nausea, cough, acne, allergic
conjunctivitis can be treated by self
medication
Potential Risks
• Individual level
• Incorrect self-diagnosis
• Failure to seek appropriate medical advice promptly
• Incorrect choice of therapy
• Failure to recognize special pharmacological risks
• Failure to recognize or self-diagnosis contraindications,
interactions, warnings and precautions
• Failure to recognize that the same active substance is
already being taken under a different name
Potential Risks
• Failure to report current self-medication to the

prescribing physician (double medication/harmful
interaction)
• Failure to recognize or report adverse drug reactions
• Incorrect route of administration
• Inadequate or excessive dosage
• Excessively prolonged use
Potential Risks
• Risk of dependence and abuse

• Food and drug interaction
• Storage in incorrect conditions or beyond the
recommended shelf life
• Paracetamol, an antipyretic and analgesic in
large doses can cause liver failure.
• Financial losses – delayed recovery is
ultimately more costly
Potential Risks
At community level:
• Improper self-medication could result in an increase in drug
induced disease and in wasteful public expenditure.
Prevention of Potential Risks
Associated with Self-Medication
Role of health profession
• Health professionals are one who has potential role in
preventing risks of self-medication. Because he is the one
who work on three main therapeutic aspects of
professionalism in his daily practice: Information, therapeutic
advice and education.
• Information
• Whenever health professionals are prescribing drugs, he
should give proper instructions and explain for what it is
prescribed so that it will be helpful for the patient to
understand and making his own decisions. Given information
should be at patient's comprehension level so that it will be
helpful for them to understand its management.
• Therapeutic advice
Lack of therapeutic compliance is a serious problem in both acute and chronic treatments
and reflects a poorly-understood or incomplete description of the treatment aims. If patients
are not well-informed they are unlikely to use medication correctly. However, if the directions
for use and the limitations of a given drug are explained-for example, dose, frequency of
dose, treatment course, how to take it, etc., then patients have a set of guidelines which will
help them to use the drug correctly, both now and in the future. Inappropriate and erratic
self-medication, along with lack of compliance, will only be reduced if patients are informed
and understand clearly why certain advice has been given.
• Education
Inappropriate self-medication is the result of the medical model from which people have
learnt. Proper health education should be given to the patients. By regularly adopting an
educational attitude we can have an effect on large sectors of the population, on people
who, in turn, may directly influence their friends and family. This aspect is of particular
importance with respect to the self-medication of children by their parents or takes
cares.
Role of pharmacist
He is one of the key role players in educating his customers about the proper use of medicines,
which are intended for self-medication. For that necessary steps have to be taken in his training
and practice.
Pharmacists should guide their customers to consult the physician before taking any medication by
self. Unlike above role, pharmacists have following function as a:
• Communicator
In order to address the condition of the patient appropriately the pharmacist must ask the
patient key questions and pass on relevant information to him or her (e.g. How to take the
medicines and how to deal with safety issues).
• Quality drug supplier
The pharmacist must ensure that the products he/she purchases are from reputable sources and
of good quality.
• Trainer and supervisor
To achieve this pharmacist must develop a protocol for referral to the pharmacist, protocols for
community health workers involved with the handling and distribution of medicines.
• Collaborator
It is imperative that pharmacists develop quality collaborative relationships with the other health
care professionals, national professional associations, the pharmaceutical industry, governments
(local/national), patients and general public.
Conclusion
Self-medication is an alarming
concept. This review focused on
the self-medication of allopathic
drugs, their use, its safety and
reason for using it.
It would be safe, if the people who
are using it have sufficient
knowledge about its dose, time of
intake, side-effect on over dose,
but due to lack of information it can
cause serious effects such as
antibiotic resistance, skin problem,
hypersensitivity and allergy.

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SELF-MEDICATION –

A GROWING GLOBAL CONCERN

Self-medication is a global phenomenon and

Generally speaking, self-medication is defined as

Studies carried out on self-medication states that it is very

Modern consumers (patients) wish to take a greater role in

Self-medication is very common and a number of

Self-medication is influenced by many factors

Potential benefits (Individual level)

• At community level: Good self-medication can

• Help to prevent and treat symptoms and

• Failure to report current self-medication to the

• Risk of dependence and abuse

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