Assessment of self medication among dental students and dental practitioners in and around kancheepuram district

Abstract

ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACTA Non-doctor prescribing and self-medication of drugs is common in developing countries. People tend to act on their own for their health. Encouragement of self-care is seen as giving patients every opportunity to take responsibility and build confidence in their ability to manage their own health. Self-medication is defined as the use of medication whether modern or traditional for the purpose of self-treatment. Studies on self-medication showed that it is influenced by a variety of factors such as education, family, society, law, exposure to advertisements and the availability of drugs. The most common medication used for self-medications are antibiotics and analgesics. Drug retail shops are frequently the first point of contact with the healthcare system. People tend to bypass the doctor visit, proceed to the pharmacy and buy the drug acting solely on their own instinct. Unlike other aspects of self-care and self-medication involves the usage of drugs and drugs have the potential to do good as well as harm. This study aims to gather information about the awareness and prevalence of self-medication in the dental student fraternity and also to educate people to ensure safe practices.