Table 3.
Explanations for self-medication.
| Prevalence | N | % |
|---|---|---|
| Self-medication | 503 | 62.9 |
| No self-medication | 297 | 37.1 |
| Causes of self-medication (503) # | ||
| No need to visit the doctor for a minor disease | 372 | 73.9 |
| Knowledge from previous experience | 359 | 71.4 |
| The doctor will prescribe me the same drug | 155 | 30.8 |
| Time and money saving | 119 | 23.7 |
| Fast relief | 66 | 13.1 |
| Chance to have experience | 36 | 7.2 |
| Absence of trust in health services | 27 | 5.4 |
| Unavailability of health service | 15 | 2.9 |
| Causes for not self-medicating (297) # | ||
| Fear of adverse/ side effects | 124 | 41.8 |
| Lack of knowledge & experience | 73 | 24.6 |
| Lack of confidence | 52 | 17.5 |
| It is injurious to health | 31 | 10.4 |
| Prior bad experience with self-medication | 17 | 5.7 |
| Sources for self-medication (503) # | ||
| Pharmacy clerk | 352 | 69.9 |
| Neighbors & family | 313 | 62.2 |
| Friends & classroom colleagues | 204 | 40.6 |
| Old prescription | 169 | 33.6 |
| My decision | 152 | 30.2 |
| Internet | 148 | 29.4 |
| Books & magazine | 24 | 4.8 |
| Academic effect on self-medication: | ||
| (i) knowledge gained in college makes students safer for self-medication | 494 | 61.8 |
| (ii) Changes observed in practice of self-medication as the students acquire more academic knowledge# | ||
| More careful when I self-medicate | 313 | 39.1 |
| More concerned about adverse effects/side effects/interactions | 180 | 22.5 |
| More confident self-medicating | 133 | 16.6 |
| No change | 86 | 10.8 |
| I would rather use a prescription | 75 | 9.4 |
| (iii) Recent attitude towards self-medication# | ||
| Reading the package leaflet of self-medicated drugs | 710 | 88.8 |
| I discourage friends and family from self-medicating | 699 | 87.4 |
| Believe what they read in the leaflet of medicinal products | 698 | 87.2 |
| I encourage friends and family to self-medicate | 101 | 12.6 |
|
| ||
| Total | 800 | |
#Categories are not mutually exclusive.