Drug utilization in selected health facilities of South West Shoa Zone, Oromia Region, Ethiopia

BACKGROUND Sustaining the availability and rational use of safe and effective drugs is a major problem in developing countries. Irrational drug use affects quality of health care more than accessibility of drugs. OBJECTIVE To assess drug utilization in selected health facilities of South West Shoa Zone, Oromia Region, Ethiopia. METHODS A cross-sectional study was conducted in selected health facilities of South West Shoa Zone from January 21-28, 2012 by using structured questionnaires. RESULTS Of 50 prescribers and 30 dispensers, 58% and 83.3% were males, respectively. The result showed that majority of prescribers agreed on availability of essential drugs (72%) and had access to up-to-date drug information (76%). However, 43.3% of dispensers didn't get access to up-to-date drug information. 86% and 88% of prescribers note cost of drugs and stick to standard treatment guidelines of Ethiopia during prescription, respectively. All drug dispensers check the name of the drug (100%), age of the patient (90%), the dosage form of drug (96.7%), the route of administration (90%), the duration of therapy (86.7%), and frequency of administration (86.7%) for prescription papers. CONCLUSION In general, drug utilization at the study sites was found to be good, although there are major deviations from the concept of rational drug use.