Self-medication in patients of the basic health unit of a brazilian city

Bibliographic Data

ID22099350
AuthorsDany Geraldo Kramer (0000-0001-7655-7444, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte), Franklin Learcton Bezerra De Oliveira (0000-0002-2927-9653, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte), Geraldo Barroso Cavalcanti Junior (0000-0001-9227-4145, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte)
Year2020
Volume9
Pages120-129
Publication date2020-08-28
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueSaúde e meio ambiente revista interdisciplinar (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2316-347X • E-ISSN: 2316-347X
PublisherUniversidade do Contestado - UnC (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.24302/sma.v9i0.2824
OpenAlexW3081730528
LanguageEN
References cited3

The objective of the study was to analyze the prevalence of self-medication among users of Basic Health Units in the city of Monte Alegre – Rio Grande do Norte State, Brazil. A descriptive exploratory study was carried out, through the application of structured questionnaires, with 125 people. It was observed that 83% of the interviewees practiced self-medication, of these, 34%, they did it monthly. The main justifications for this practice were: difficulty accessing health services (50%), financial reasons (28%) and lack of time (22%). The most used drugs were: analgesic (63%), anti-inflammatory (13%) and sedative / hypnotic (7.0%). Most (55%) claimed to have no or little knowledge about the meaning of self-medication. This demonstrates the need for health education actions in order to educate the population about the risks of this practice, since it can lead to masking of symptoms of diseases, drug interactions and intoxications that compromise the health of the user. Keywords: Health. Drug. Use

Descriptive research · Exploratory research · Family medicine · Health education · Public health · Sociology · Antibiotic Use and Resistance · Medicine · Nursing · Pharmaceutical Practices and Patient Outcomes · Psychology · Public Health in Brazil

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Open DOIOpen Access