Physician-Patient Communication Regarding Prescribed Medication in an Ambulatory Care Setting in Kathmandu, Nepal

Abstract

Physician-patient interactions often lead to prescription of medicines. Safety andcompliance in the use of these medicines are largely dependent on proper verbal aswell as written communication between prescriber and patient. However, severalpublished reports suggest that such communication is often inadequate. The presentstudy indicated suboptimal doctor-patient communication at a tertiary care hospitalin Nepal. Fifty-two (21.7%) of the 240 patients/caregivers interviewed after out-patientconsultation claimed that doctors did not provide any information on prescribedmedicines. Nearly a quarter of the 188 patients/caregivers who did report havingreceived information could not recall what they had been told, and in more than halfof these cases the lack of recall was attributed to problems in communication. Frequentuse of the English language and Latin abbreviation in prescribed dosing schedulesindicated a need for improvement in written communication as well.Key Words: prescribing information; communication; physician-patient interaction; Nepal.

Research-Based Development of Consumer Drug Information Pamphlet at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Nepal

“…13 There is often inadequate communication, particularly in developing countries, between the public who consume medicines and those who prescribe, dispense, administer and regulate drugs. [21][22][23] The situation is not different in Nepal.…”

Farmer responses to technical advice offered at plant clinics in Malawi, Costa Rica and Nepal

“…This was an unfortunate and unanticipated side effect of the 'clinic' analogy, where bad habits from the human health system were unwittingly borrowed into the plant clinics. Nepali medical doctors tend to write their prescriptions in English, or in a mix of English and Nepali, and may even use Latin abbreviations for the frequency of drug administration (Joshi et al, 2001). Fortunately, most Nepali plant doctors resist such obfuscation, and write prescriptions in Nepali, and in a clear, legible handwriting as well.…”