Consumer Awareness, Attitude, and Behavior Related to the Rational Use of Medicines in a Developing Country Context: The Case of Turkey

BACKGROUND: The high cost of medicines continues to be a major problem in health care. AIM: This study aims to investigate the awareness, attitudes, and behaviors of consumers with regard to the rational use of medicine (RUM) in a developing country context. METHODS: The study was designed as descriptive cross-sectional research. The survey was conducted in the two major cities of Turkey, namely, Ankara and Edirne, whose populations well-represent the socio-economic characteristics of the overall Turkish population between January and March 2016. A total of 2267 individuals participated in the survey. The survey consisted of 37 questions which included statements about various socio-demographic factors and the RUM. Frequencies and percentages were used for the presentation of qualitative data while cross-tabulations and Chi-square tests were utilized for the investigation of the relationships among research variables. RESULTS: According to the findings, 54.7% of participants stated that they request medicine not related to their illness be added to the prescription; only 24.7% of them have heard the term “rational use of medicine.” The distribution of the responses related to handling unused medicines was significant for educational level (p = 0.010; α = 0.05). At the same time, high school and university graduates are also more likely to take medicines in accordance with doctor’s advice compare to the other groups. CONCLUSION: Our study results indicate that consumer awareness of the RUMs is at a low level and more effective consumer awareness campaigns are needed on this issue