Prevalence and Practice of Unused and Expired Medicine—A Community-Based Study among Saudi Adults in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Wajid, Syed; Siddiqui, Nasir A.; Mothana, Ramzi A.; Samreen, Sana

doi:10.1155/2020/6539251

Cited by 25 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 26 publications

(53 reference statements)

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“…Many studies have investigated the level of knowledge on medication waste in different countries. In Saudi Arabia, a study in Riyadh showed that approximately 65% of the respondents keep medicines until they expire, 48.1% throw medicines in the garbage at home, and only 5.4% return medicines to medical stores [6]. Another study [7], conducted in Jeddah, reported that 91.57% of the respondents disposed of their expired medications by discarding them with household waste, while only 2.98% returned expired medicines to medical stores.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Increasing Awareness of Proper Disposal of Unused and Expired Medication Using a Knowledge‐Based Disposal Management System

Alshehri¹,

Banjar

2022

Journal of Environmental and Public Health

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Medicines are used daily in Saudi Arabian homes. However, when these medicines are no longer needed, most people dispose of them incorrectly, forgetting the harmful impact of improper disposal. Inadequate awareness and knowledge are major reasons for improper disposal. In this study, we create a broad inclusive knowledge base that includes many types of medications available in Saudi homes and provides guidance on how to dispose of them as a means of raising awareness on correct disposal methods and preventing harmful impacts on both the environment and society. The study primarily aims to understand societal behaviour regarding the disposal of unused and expired medications and develop a prototype of a knowledge-based system that helps raise awareness of correct disposal methods for unused and expired medications. The data in the knowledge base are presented in tables that are easy to understand and comprehend, and the recommendations are also easy to apply and practice in everyday life. The results from the survey show that 66.8% of the 310 participants had unneeded medications in their homes, and only 14.9% knew how to dispose of unusable medications, while only 6.5% knew how to dispose of expired medications. Overall, the research studied Saudi society’s behaviour regarding unused and expired medications, and we created a prototype of a knowledge-based system designed to increase awareness of proper disposal and management of unused and expired medications.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Increasing Awareness of Proper Disposal of Unused and Expired Medication Using a Knowledge‐Based Disposal Management System

Alshehri¹,

Banjar

2022

Journal of Environmental and Public Health

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“…Additionally, the aforementioned pharmacological classes and other classes such as lipid-lowering agents, estrogens and others were identified on land and in the sea worldwide [ 6 ]. The most common sources for environmental contamination of pharmaceuticals included household disposal [ 7 , 8 , 9 ], industrial waste, hospital influent and effluent and human excreta [ 4 , 10 ]. Additionally, pharmaceuticals were found in low concentrations in surface water, ground water and treated drinking water [ 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, this option seems to be seldom done in Saudi Arabia. Based on previous studies, the majority of the Saudi population dispose of their drugs in the household waste, while very few people return them to pharmacies [ 8 , 9 ]. These studies also showed that the awareness of Saudi people about the good and safe practice of drug disposal was fairly low.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Community Pharmacists’ Practice, Awareness, and Beliefs about Drug Disposal in Saudi Arabia

Alghadeer

Al-Arifi

2021

Healthcare

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The awareness among Saudi people regarding the good and safe practice of drug disposal is fairly low. Community pharmacists’ potential toward drugs disposal directions and practice are not emphasized enough. Therefore, a cross sectional study was conducted in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to evaluate the practice, awareness and beliefs of community pharmacists about disposal of unused drugs. Out of 360 subjects who participated in the study, more than 70% returned the unused drugs to the pharmaceutical distributors. Around 80% of the participants confirmed the risk of environmental damage due to the inappropriate disposal of drugs, and 87.5% of them held themselves responsible for preventing such risk. Approximately 85% of surveyed pharmacists believed community pharmacies to be an appropriate location for the collection of unused drugs. There was no significant association between the community pharmacists’ age group and years of practice as community pharmacists with either the awareness of unused medication disposal on environmental hazards, or the beliefs about the appropriate location for collecting unused drugs (p > 0.05). The awareness and proactive accountable responsibility, along with community pharmacists’ belief of appointing pharmacies to collect unused drugs, strongly support the institution of drug take-back programs.

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“…The prevalence of unused medications in general population households has substantially increased recently, which can lead to medication wastage ( Makki et al, 2019 ). The prevalence of unused medications was 89.3% (N = 337) and 85.2% (N = 263) in Saudi Arabia and Ethiopia, respectively ( Kassahun and Tesfaye, 2020 ; Wajid et al, 2020 ). Furthermore, 2 of 3 prescribed medications were reported unused in households in the United States ( Law et al, 2015 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lack of Awareness of the Impact of Improperly Disposed Of Medications and Associated Factors: A Cross-Sectional Survey in Indonesian Households

et al. 2021

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Introduction: Disposal of unused medications through environmentally unsafe routes is common in Indonesia. The lack of awareness of the impact of improperly disposed of medications is a significant contributing factor. The objectives of this study were to identify factors associated with lack of awareness of the impact of improperly disposed of unused medications and to assess the associations of awareness with medication disposal practices among the general population in Indonesia.Patients and methods: An observational cross-sectional survey was conducted using nonprobability sampling in Bandung, Indonesia, from November 2017 to January 2018 among respondents who were older than 18 years, had used any medication in the past, were literate, and had signed an informed consent document. Disposal practices and awareness regarding the impact of improperly disposed of unused medications were collected using an online- and a paper-based pre-validated questionnaire. The paper-based questionnaires were distributed to respondents in public places such as city center, markets, and religious places. Binary logistic regression was performed to assess associations of sociodemographic and other related factors with a lack of awareness. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) are reported.Results: Of 497 participating respondents, 433 and 64 respondents filled an online- or a paper-based questionnaire, respectively. Most respondents were female, aged between 18 and 30 years, and students/university students. Of 497 respondents, more than half (53.1%) were not aware that improper medication disposal could harm the environment and population health. Most respondents (79.5%) had never received information about proper medication disposal practices. The education level, the number of stored medications at home, and previous education about medication disposal practices were significantly associated with awareness of proper practices. In the multivariate analysis, only those with previous education about medication disposal practices were less likely to report a lack of awareness (OR: 0.043; 95% CI: 0.02–0.09). Respondents with a lack of awareness tended to dispose of their unused medications in the garbage or shared them with friends or relatives.Conclusion: There is a clear need to increase awareness of the importance of proper medication disposal practices, in particular among the student population of Bandung city, Indonesia. Healthcare providers can play an important role by educating this specific population on the proper disposal of unused medications.

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Prevalence and Practice of Unused and Expired Medicine—A Community-Based Study among Saudi Adults in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Cited by 25 publications

References 26 publications

Increasing Awareness of Proper Disposal of Unused and Expired Medication Using a Knowledge‐Based Disposal Management System

Increasing Awareness of Proper Disposal of Unused and Expired Medication Using a Knowledge‐Based Disposal Management System

Community Pharmacists’ Practice, Awareness, and Beliefs about Drug Disposal in Saudi Arabia

Lack of Awareness of the Impact of Improperly Disposed Of Medications and Associated Factors: A Cross-Sectional Survey in Indonesian Households

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