Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 Aug 26:13:1375-1381.
doi: 10.2147/RMHP.S266329. eCollection 2020.

Self-Medication Practices among Undergraduate University Students in Northeast Ethiopia

Segenet Zewdie  1 , Assefa Andargie  2 , Haile Kassahun  1
Affiliations

Self-Medication Practices among Undergraduate University Students in Northeast Ethiopia

Segenet Zewdie et al. Risk Manag Healthc Policy. .

Abstract

Background: Inappropriate self-medication is a public-health problem worldwide. Major problems associated with self-medication include wastage of resources, increased resistance of pathogens, and adverse drug reactions.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess self-medication practices and associated factors among undergraduate Wollo University students in Northeast Ethiopia.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 341 undergraduate university students using a pretested and self-administered questionnaire from January to February 2019. Simple random sampling was used to select study participants. Data were collected using the self-administered questionnaire and analyzed with SPSS version 20. Multiple logistic regression was employed in data analysis, with P<0.05 considered statistically significant.

Results: The prevalence of self-medication in this study was 64.98%. Mildness of disease (57, 34.13%) and dissatisfaction with health-care services, (44, 26.34%) were the main reasons for self-medication practice. The most common types of diseases for self-medication were headache (80, 47.9%), gastrointestinal infections (74, 44.31%), and respiratory tract infections (48, 28.74%). Analgesics (94, 56.28%) and antibiotics (60, 35.9%) were the leading classes of medicine used in self-medication. Multivariate regression analysis indicated that agriculture students (AOR 0.163, 95% CI 0.049-0.545) were 84% less likely to practice self-medication than medicine and health-science students.

Conclusion: This study revealed that self-medication practices are common among study participants and significantly associated with their field of study. Awareness promotion on the risk of inappropriate self-medication for university students is highly recommended.

Keywords: Ethiopia; self-medication practices; undergraduate university students.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Organization WH. The Role of the Pharmacist in Self-Care and Self-Medication: Report of the 4th WHO Consultative Group on the Role of the Pharmacist. The Hague, The Netherlands: World Health Organization; 1998. 2628August.
    1. Mamo S, Ayele Y, Dechasa M. Self-medication practices among community of harar city and its surroundings, Eastern Ethiopia. J Pharm. 2018;2018:1. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Organization WH. General policy issues-the benefits and risks of self-medication. WHO Drug Information. 2000;14:1–2.
    1. Jember E, Feleke A, Debie A, Asrade G. Self-medication practices and associated factors among households at Gondar town, Northwest Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study. BMC Res Notes. 2019;12(1):1–7. doi:10.1186/s13104-019-4195-2 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Seam M, Reza O, Bhatta R, et al. Assessing the perceptions and practice of self-medication among Bangladeshi undergraduate pharmacy students. Pharmacy. 2018;6(1):6. doi:10.3390/pharmacy6010006 - DOI - PMC - PubMed