Prevalence and Determinants of Household Medication Storage During the COVID-19 Outbreak in Southwest Ethiopia

Abstract

Background Most households worldwide keep medicines on hand for various reasons, including emergency use, treatment of acute and chronic diseases, and anticipated future use. Being infected or fear of getting COVID-19 in the current pandemic could increase the storage of drugs at home. Thus, this study aimed to assess the prevalence of household storage of medicines and associated factors in southwest Ethiopia during the COVID-19 outbreak. Methods A cross-sectional household survey was conducted from February 1 to May 30, 2022. Data on the extent of storage, storage conditions, their current status, disposal methods, among others, were collected through structured interviews and observations. The data were entered into EPI info, exported, and analyzed using Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS). Bivariate followed by multivariate logistic regression was used to identify associated factors. P-value <0.05 was used as a cut-off point to decide statistical significance. Results The magnitude of household medication storage was 48% (95% CI). Analgesics (28.7%) and antibacterial (21.1%) agents were the most predominant class of drugs stored in the households. The most significant proportion of the home-stored medications (34.7%) was reserved for future use, and 31.8% were for treating current medical conditions. The majority of the respondents (84.1%) had never heard/learned about the safe disposal ways of drugs. The presence of children aged less than 5 years in a household [AOR = 1.90 (1.19, 3.05)] and the existence of chronically sick patients in a household [AOR = 4.3 (2.25, 8.45)] were factors significantly associated with household medication storage. Conclusion The current study revealed a high prevalence of home medication storage; thus, to lessen or eliminate the negative consequences of storing medications at home, it is necessary to review the medication utilization chain and offer community-based training on proper medication storage and disposal techniques, including establishing take-back programs.

Intentions to Create Green Start-Ups for Collection of Unwanted Drugs: An Empirical Study

“…Drug waste can be defined as "drugs that can no longer be used because of being expired, unused, spilled, withdrawn, recalled, damaged, contaminated, or for any other reason" [1] (p. 2). This waste is often generated as a result of prescribing excessive drugs and/or not consuming all of the prescribed quantity, as some people resort to storing them correctly (or incorrectly) in their homes indefinitely [2][3][4][5]. Furthermore, many households do not know (are unaware) how to properly deal with unwanted drugs.…”

“…Hence, many countries, including developing countries, have practically begun to encourage behaviors to reduce drug waste [5]. However, most African countries, including Algeria, Nigeria, and Ethiopia, still lack effective programs for the disposal of unwanted drugs [3,5,7,13]. In contrast, some countries have also established unwanted drug take-back and disposal programs [2].…”

Modeling Predictors of Medication Waste Reduction Intention in Algeria: Extending the Theory of Planned Behavior

“…In recent years, the volume of consumption, production [ 1 ], and waste of medications products [ 2 ] has witnessed remarkable growth. Furthermore, with the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, the demand for medications grew [ 3 , 4 ], the amount of medication stored in homes has increased [ 5 ], and the volume of medications consumption also surged [ 3 , 6 ], which has caused a growth in the volume of medication waste [ 4 , 6 ]. Unfortunately, the most worrying thing is that all stages of the medication life cycle (production, consumption, and disposal) contribute to environmental contamination [ 7 ].…”

“…Moreover, these behaviors are often associated with a lack of environmental awareness and knowledge about the negative consequences and effects of wasted medications [ 1 , 18 ] and lower levels of perceived risk associated with wasted medications [ 21 ]. In this context, Kahssay et al [ 5 ] found that 84.1% of the respondents in Ethiopia “had never heard/learned” about methods of safe disposal of medications. Recently, Håkonsen et al [ 22 ] stated that despite the improvement in awareness of the serious harms of medications, studies on the influence of this awareness in consumer behavior are very few.…”

“…Despite it all, current research has focused on investigating issues related to the medication waste reality, such as the examination of medication waste volume [ 2 ], medication waste disposal [ 6 , 9 , 12 , 16 , 17 , 33 , 34 ], medication waste practices [ 13 , 27 ], knowledge, awareness, and attitudes towards wasting medications [ 1 , 28 , 35 ], causative factors of medication waste [ 14 ], and determinants of medications storage [ 5 , 36 , 37 ]. Moreover, other studies have focused on medication waste management [ 4 , 8 , 25 , 26 ].…”