Banda Owen, Vlahakis Pipina Anna, Daka Victor, Matafwali Scott Kaba
School of Medicine, Public Health Department, Copperbelt University, Ndola, Zambia.
School of Medicine, Basic Science Department, Copperbelt University, Ndola, Zambia.
Saudi Pharm J. 2021 Nov;29(11):1233-1237. doi: 10.1016/j.jsps.2021.10.005. Epub 2021 Oct 25.
Self-medication is a common practice and cause for concern globally. There is a paucity of information regarding students' self‑medication in Zambia. Therefore, this study aimed at determining the self‑medication practices among the medical students at Copperbelt University.
A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 334 students. Data was collected using a semi-structured questionnaire, entered in excel, cleaned, and exported to SPSS version 21 for statistical analysis. Univariate analysis using Chi-Square or Fishers Exact test was performed. Independent predictors of self-medication practices were determined using logistic regression. Adjusted Odds ratios (AOR) and their 95% confidence intervals are reported.
A total of 334 medical students, with slightly more females (50.3%, n = 168), participated in the study. Of these 61.1% (n = 204) reported self-medicating. Reasons for self-medicating were the presence of long queues at health facilities and lack of time to visit the hospital. Only the year of study was independently associated with self-medicating with those in their 4th year of study being more likely to self-medicate [AOR:3.43, 95% CI: 1.52-7.73].
Students should be educated on the consequences of self-medication practices especially the rational use of antibiotics.
自我药疗是一种普遍的行为，在全球范围内引发关注。赞比亚缺乏关于学生自我药疗的信息。因此，本研究旨在确定铜带大学医学生的自我药疗行为。
对334名学生进行了描述性横断面研究。使用半结构化问卷收集数据，录入Excel，清理后导出至SPSS 21版进行统计分析。采用卡方检验或Fisher精确检验进行单因素分析。使用逻辑回归确定自我药疗行为的独立预测因素。报告调整后的比值比（AOR）及其95%置信区间。
共有334名医学生参与研究，其中女生略多（50.3%，n = 168）。其中61.1%（n = 204）报告有自我药疗行为。自我药疗的原因是医疗机构排队长以及没有时间去医院就诊。仅学习年份与自我药疗独立相关，四年级学生更有可能自我药疗[AOR：3.43，95%CI：1.52 - 7.73]。
应教育学生了解自我药疗行为的后果，尤其是抗生素的合理使用。
