Public knowledge and awareness towards antibiotics use in Yogyakarta: A cross sectional survey

Irrational use of antibiotics is a public health problem. Our study aimed to evaluate knowledge and awareness of antibiotics, and to examine its’ associated factors. We conducted a cross sectional survey. The questionnaire was adapted from WHO Multi-country survey. Adults aged 18 years old and were receiving prescription from eight outpatient clinics and pharmacies in Yogyakarta province completed the survey. The questionnaire was consisted of three sections, i.e. socio-demographic factors, knowledge of antibiotics, and experiences in using antibiotics. Scores on questions and data were presented descriptively and analyzed using logistic regression to evaluate the influence of variables on knowledge of antibiotics. Out of 268 respondents, a cumulative 76% of them used antibiotics in last six months. Majority of respondents (58%) had low level knowledge on antibiotic use and awareness, and incorrectly identified that cold and cough are treatable with antibiotics (75%). Interestingly, 71% of participants agreed that internet is a major source of information on antibiotics (71%), while only 58% and 45% of respondents see pharmacists and medical professionals respectively. The antibiotics were received from prescription (79%) and 70% of respondents completed the full course of antibiotics prescribed, but only 32% of them became more cautious about antibiotic use. We found the highest association between gender, age, education level, with the knowledge of antibiotics. The overall level of knowledge and awareness on antibiotics use among residents in Yogyakarta is low. This mandates public health awareness intervention programs to be implemented on the use of antibiotics