OBJECTIVE To evaluate indicators related to the rational use of medicines and its associated factors in Basic Health Units. METHOD This is a cross-sectional study carried out in a representative sample of Brazilian cities included in the Pesquisa Nacional sobre Acesso, Utilização e Promoção do Uso Racional de Medicamentos - Serviços, 2015 (PNAUM - National Survey on Access, Use and Promotion ...

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the knowledge, attitude and practice of consumers in India about disposal of unused medicines. MATERIALS AND METHODS A questionnaire comprising 11 questions evaluating the Knowledge (2), Attitude (3) and Practice (6) of unused medicines was prepared and pre validated before administering to 200 consumers of medicines attending the outpatient department of Civil Hospital...

UNLABELLED Managing medical complications in pregnancy is a challenge to clinicians. OBJECTIVES This study profiled some disease and prescription patterns for pregnant women attending antenatal clinics (ANCs) in Nigeria. A risk classification of the medicines was also determined. METHODS Medical case files of 1,200 pregnant women attending antenatal clinics of 3 health facilities in Benin C...

BACKGROUND The use of herbal medicines is on the increase globally and they are usually supplied in pharmacies as non-prescription medicines. Pharmacists are, therefore, responsible for educating and informing the consumers about rational use of herbal medicines. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the knowledge of pharmacists in Lagos, Nigeria with regards to the herbal medicines they supplied by their ph...

Herbal medicines are being increasingly used for treatment of variety of disorders. Herbal medicines are generally thought to lack severe side effects. Despite of the general belief, herbal medicines are known to cause serious side effects and toxicities. On the other hand, physicians’ knowledge of herbal medicines and their potential toxicities are generally limited. Neurotoxicity, cardiac tox...

Despite the high level of spending on cancer medicines in Australia, consumer organisations and the pharmaceutical industry often make claims of delayed or lack of access to new cancer medicines-claims that are frequently supported by prominent coverage in the Australian media. These claims, while morally and psychologically compelling, tend to ignore the complexity of medicines funding decisio...

I. History of medicines regulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 II. Why regulating drugs? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 III. What is medicines regulation? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 IV. Drug registration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...

BACKGROUND Over three-quarter of the world's population is using herbal medicines with an increasing trend globally. Herbal medicines may be beneficial but are not completely harmless.This study aimed to assess the extent of use and the general knowledge of the benefits and safety of herbal medicines among urban residents in Lagos, Nigeria. METHODS The study involved 388 participants recruite...

BACKGROUND There is a growing public interest in complementary and alternative treatments. The attitudes and perceptions regarding herbal therapies have not been evaluated amongst physicians-in-training. OBJECTIVE This pilot study aimed to assess the self-perceived competence and attitudes of physicians-in-training in dealing with herbal medicines in clinical practice. METHODS A survey was ...

BACKGROUND Prescription medicine sharing has been defined as the lending of medicines (giving prescription medicines to someone else) or borrowing of medicines (being given and using a medicine prescribed for another person). This qualitative study explored the views of patients, to elicit information regarding factors influencing medicine sharing behaviours, their experiences of the consequenc...