Attitudes, attributions, and usage patterns of primary care patients with regard to over-the-counter drugs —a survey in Germany

SummaryStudies show that over-the-counter drugs are widely used by consumers. Moreover, there is a  huge selection available and they are prominently featured in advertising. To date, there exist only a few studies that shed light on the attitudes, attributions, and usage patterns of patients with regard to use of over-the-counter drugs. An anonymized explorative waiting room survey was conduct ed among 900 patients in 60 GP practices in the German states of North Rhine-Westphalia, Hesse, and Rhineland-Palatinate. As well as the descriptive analysis, a t test was applied to independent random samples, in order to identify significant differences between two groups. 65% of respondents reported using over-the-counter drugs frequently or occasionally. With regard to effects, risks, and side effects, 54% state that they usually take advice from their GP and/or pharmacist before purchasing or taking over-the-counter preparations. For 56%, the package information leaflet is a  frequent source of information about the over-the-counter drugs used. The respondents consider over-the-counter preparations to be particularly suitable for (preventive) treatment of colds, flu symptoms, and pain management. The widespread perception of over-the-counter drugs as simple to use (62% ), low-dose (69%), and low-efficacy (73%) products does not always correspond to the actual capabilities and risks of over-the-counter self-medication. Given the easy availability of over-the-counter drugs and ...
Source: Wiener Medizinische Wochenschrift - Category: General Medicine Source Type: research