Table 3.
Characteristics and content of the home medicine cabinets inspected (n = 743)
| MD (%) | Cabinets inspected (n = 743) | |
|---|---|---|
| A single home medicine cabinet | 0.5 | 565 (76.5%) |
| Unsuitable location | 6.6 | 104 (15.0%) |
| Location: | 26.0 | |
| Kitchen | 192 (34.9%) | |
| Living room | 146 (25.6%) | |
| Bathroom | 109 (19.8%) | |
| Bedroom | 54 (9.8%) | |
| Other room | 49 (8.9%) | |
| Type of medicine cabinet: | 0.4 | |
| Cupboard | 406 (54.9%) | |
| Bag | 61 (8.2%) | |
| Drawer | 172 (23.2%) | |
| Other | 171 (23.1%) | |
| Medicine cabinet used by: | 3.1 | |
| The patient only | 510 (69.3%) | |
| The patient and his/her spouse | 224 (30.4%) | |
| The patient and another person | 44 (6.0%) | |
| Storage problems | 5.8 | 152 (21.7%) |
| Number of expired drugs: | 1.9 | |
| 0 | 432 (59.3%) | |
| 1–5 | 201 (27.6%) | |
| 6–10 | 48 (6.6%) | |
| 11–15 | 19 (2.6%) | |
| ≥ 16 | 29 (4.0%) | |
| Storage of products other than drugs | 1.2 | 181 (24.7%) |
| Presence of potentially inappropriate and/or at-risk medications | 6.6 | 104 (15.0%) |
| Redundant medications | 3.1 | 147 (20.4%) |
| Different generic formulations of the same drug at the same dose level | 2.8 | 137 (19.0%) |
| Patient with medications kept in the refrigerator | 0.8 | 129 (17.5%) |
| Inappropriate storage in the refrigerator (n = 129) | 0.8 | 22 (3.0%) |
Abbreviation: MD Missing data