Prevalence of prescription medication sharing behaviour among students

Abstract

Prescription medication sharing behaviour among young people is of public health significance. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of prescription medication sharing behaviour among students. 895 questionnaires were administered to students. In the questionnaires, they were asked to indicate whether they had previously borrowed or loaned prescription medication  or engaged in both practices. They were also asked to indicate the type of medicines they had shared; reasons for sharing prescription medication; and if their condition improved after the medication sharing. The results revealed that 52.7% of the study population were involved in prescription medication sharing, among which 31.4% had both borrowed and loaned prescription medicines. Prescription medication sharing was more common among ages 16-25 years. The common reasons given by respondents  for sharing prescription medications were: had the same problem as the person (30.5%) and got it from someone who knows about medicines (22.5%). The common types of medication shared by the study population were pain medications (55.1%), antibiotics (27.3%) and cold medications (16.1%). 31.1% of those involved in medication sharing behaviour did not have their condition improved. The study revealed that there is a high prevalence of prescription medication sharing behaviour among students.