Over-the-Counter Medicine Use Prior to and During Hospitalization

2005 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 268-273 ◽  
Author(s):  
C Alice Oborne ◽  
Michal L Luzac
Keyword(s):  
Hospital Stay ◽  
Access To Medicines ◽  
Medicine Use ◽  
Health Food ◽  
Over The Counter ◽  
Clinical Notes ◽  
Otc Drugs ◽  
Drug History ◽  
Minor Ailments ◽  
The Uk

BACKGROUND: In the UK, medicines are being reclassified from prescription-only drugs to allow supply without prescription. This allows faster and easier access to medicines to treat minor ailments and allows patients to take greater responsibility for their health. However, over-the-counter (OTC) drugs may pose risks to patients; thus, it is important to understand patients' OTC medicine use. OBJECTIVE: To assess use of OTC drugs prior to and during hospital stay of inpatients of all ages and specialties. METHODS: Data were collected for 186 randomly selected patients. Patients were interviewed about OTC medicine use. Clinical notes and drug charts were examined for documentation of OTC medicine use. RESULTS: A total of 268 OTC medicines were used by 119 (64.0%) patients, and 117 (43.7%) were taken at least daily. Only 13 (4.9%) OTC drugs were recorded in the drug history taken at admission. Twenty-six (9.7%) OTC agents were still taken during hospitalization, but only 8 (31%) were recorded on drug charts. Patients bought 183 (68.3%) items from pharmacies, 28 (10.4%) in health food shops, and 57 (21.7%) elsewhere including supermarkets, homeopaths, or mail order. Patients had little knowledge of potential adverse effects or contraindications. CONCLUSIONS: Many patients use OTC medication prior to and during hospital stay, but documentation in hospital notes is poor. Healthcare professionals must pay closer attention to patients' use of OTC drugs.

Herbal remedies and clinical biochemistry

2003 ◽  
Vol 40 (5) ◽  
pp. 489-507 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cathryn M Corns
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metal Contamination ◽  
Clinical Laboratory ◽  
Herbal Medicines ◽  
Herbal Remedies ◽  
Herbal Supplements ◽  
Over The Counter ◽  
Herbal Products ◽  
The Public ◽  
Drug History ◽  
The Uk

The use of herbal products in the UK is increasing, and over-the-counter herbal supplements are perceived by the public as 'safe' and 'harmless'. Although the majority of them are safe, some herbal medicines carry risks. Heavy metal contamination, adulteration with Western pharmaceuticals and inclusion of prohibited animal and plant ingredients are regularly reported in ethnic medicines. Other herbs are hepato- or nephrotoxic and some interact with prescription medicines. Doctors should be made aware of the need to take a herbal as well as a drug history, and the clinical laboratory has a role in helping understanding of how herbal products may affect laboratory tests and in suggesting relevant lines of investigation in patients whose symptoms may be linked to the use of herbal products.

Over-the-Counter Monograph Safety, Innovation, and Reform Act

2021 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 321-327
Author(s):  
Jason Gardiner ◽  
Aaron S. Kesselheim
Keyword(s):  
Over The Counter ◽  
Safety Issues ◽  
Otc Drugs ◽  
The Us

AbstractOver-the-counter (OTC) drugs are ubiquitous in the US. Policymakers have long debated how to modernize the system for making determinations of safety and effectiveness and addressing safety issues with OTC drugs.

Psychiatric illness and driving: Irish psychiatrists' documentation practices

2009 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Camilla Langan
Keyword(s):  
Psychiatric Illness ◽  
Medication Compliance ◽  
Potential Effect ◽  
Driving Ability ◽  
Second Phase ◽  
Clinical Notes ◽  
Anonymous Questionnaire ◽  
Legal Obligations ◽  
Legal Duty ◽  
The Uk

AbstractObjective: Psychiatric illness and the use of psychotropic medication are recognised as factors that may impair driving ability. Clinicians in the UK have a legal duty to advise patients on the effects of illness and prescribed medication on driving ability. Although clinicians in Ireland have no equivalent legal obligations, good medical practice suggests that doctors should be aware of whether patients are active drivers, and issue appropriate advice, supported by adequate documentation in clinical notes.Method: The initial phase of the study analysed 44 outpatient records and 48 discharge records to ascertain the level of documentation regarding driving status, and advice given to patients regarding the effect of illness or medication on driving ability. The second phase involved distribution of an anonymous questionnaire to 18 psychiatrists employed in the acute psychiatric unit setting.Results: Although there was minimal documentation regarding the potential effect of illness on driving ability, more than 50% of case notes revealed documented advice to patients regarding side-effects of medication and driving ability. Over 50% of case notes contained advice about medication compliance, but none contained cautionary advice about operating machinery. All psychiatrists admitted not being aware of the driving status of every patient they reviewed. Over 50% admitted to advising patients of the effect of illness or medication on driving ability, but fewer reported documenting this advice on every occasion. All psychiatrists reported that they would benefit from training in this area.Conclusion: This study suggests that there is underdocumentation of advice given to patients regarding the effect of their symptoms or medication on driving ability. Clinicians need to improve their awareness of patients' driving status, in addition to receiving training on what their responsibilities are in this regard.

scholarly journals Behavior of Medical Students toward Over-the-Counter Drugs in Comparison to Students from Other Faculties, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

2021 ◽  
pp. 129-135
Author(s):  
Amar Fathi Mohamed Khalifa ◽  
Yasser Nabil AlKhudairy ◽  
Adel Ahmed Algahtani ◽  
Bandar Mohammed Abduljabbar ◽  
Fahad Majed Aldawsari ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
P Value ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Self Medication ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Over The Counter ◽  
Otc Drugs ◽  
Professional Guidance

Background: Over-the-counter-drugs (OTC) are drugs that can be obtained by patients without a prescription from a physician. In Saudi Arabia, it has been reported that more than half of university students practiced self-medication and used OTC drugs. Methods: An institutional-based cross-sectional study, among medical and non-medical students in Riyadh. The sample size was 421, by systemic random sampling. A pre-coded pre-tested online questionnaire was used. Data was analyzed using SPSS V 23. P-value ≤ 0.05 was considered significant. Results: There was no significant relationship between what the participants were majoring in and the usage of OTC drugs (p value= 0.373). Gender also had no relation with the use of OTC (p value= 0.168). Panadol appeared as the most commonly used OTC drug 62.9% for the relief of the most commonly mentioned factor which is headache 50.12%.  Conclusion: Medical education didn’t have much of an effect on the use of OTC drugs. Moreover, professional guidance or advice was not considered most of the time for taking OTC, but the majority of respondents portrayed good behavior towards usage of OTC.

scholarly journals Evaluate use of over the counter drugs among medical students in a tertiary care teaching hospital

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 973
Author(s):  
Megha Sood ◽  
Jagminder Kaur Bajaj ◽  
Nipunjot Grewal
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Drug Use ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Easy Access ◽  
Self Medication ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Over The Counter ◽  
Care Teaching ◽  
Otc Drugs ◽  
Abdominal Symptoms

Background: In our country there is easy availability of drugs over the counter leading to their unintentional misuse and abuse. Over the counter availability of drugs does offer the benefit of easy access to medicines and allows individuals to become in charge of their own health. It is important to understand that medical education can impact the OTC drug use amongst medical students. In order to observe the pattern of OTC drug use among the first and second professional MBBS students we planned this study. The aim of the study was to evaluate use of over the counter (OTC) drugs among medical students in a tertiary care teaching hospital.Methods: Our study was a cross sectional study conducted on first and second professional MBBS students. Authors administered a self structured, prevalidated questionnaire to the students. The data obtained was tabulated, analyzed and the results calculated in percentages.Results: The use of OTC drugs is common amongst undergraduate students.  All (100%) the students who participated in the study had used OTC drugs at some point in their life. The common conditions prompting use of OTC drugs include head ache, body aches (74%), fever (72%), respiratory conditions such as: cold (60%), cough (28.5%), abdominal symptoms such as: abdominal pain (14%), gastritis (7.5%), diarrhea (6%), vomiting (5%) and allergies (10%). Very few students reported adverse drug reactions with these drugs.Conclusions: From our study we have concluded that OTC drugs are commonly used amongst medical students. So, periodic training and talks on self medication are necessary for them. Student knowledge in this aspect will help them in future counseling of their patients.

scholarly journals People’s expectations in Ho Chi Minh City when buying over - the - counter drugs to self - treatment

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nguyen Minh Ha ◽  
Nguyen The Hung
Keyword(s):  
Factor Analysis ◽  
Exploratory Factor Analysis ◽  
Prescription Drugs ◽  
Quantitative Method ◽  
Information Behavior ◽  
Ho Chi Minh City ◽  
Over The Counter ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Otc Drugs ◽  
Common Diseases

This objective is to study determinants of people’s expectation in Ho Chi Minh city when buying over – the counter drugs to self – treatment. With a directly surveyed dataset of 403 citizens over 18 years old who purchased medicines for self-treatment, and using the quantitative method by exploratory factor analysis (EFA), the study found factors affecting people’s expectations when buying over – the – counter (OTC) drugs to heal themselves are past purchase and use of non-prescription drugs, experience treating common diseases with OTC drugs, seeking information behavior when intending buying non-prescription drugs, the impression of the-over-counter medications and the impression of pharmacist at pharmacy by Ho Chi Minh city (HCMC) citizens.

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