Potential strategies to limit inappropriate purchasing of antibiotics without a prescription in a rural province in South Africa : pilot study and the implications

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dc.contributor.author Sono, Tiyani Milta
dc.contributor.author Maluleke, Morgan Tiyiselani
dc.contributor.author Jelić, Ana Golić
dc.contributor.author Campbell, Stephen
dc.contributor.author Markovic-Pekovic, Vanda
dc.contributor.author Schellack, Natalie
dc.contributor.author Kumar, Santosh
dc.contributor.author Godman, Brian
dc.contributor.author Meyer, Johanna Catharina
dc.date.accessioned 2024-08-16T11:26:48Z
dc.date.available 2024-08-16T11:26:48Z
dc.date.issued 2024-01
dc.description.abstract INTRODUCTION: There is considerable concern with rising rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) with its subsequent impact on morbidity, mortality and costs. In low- and middle-income countries, a key driver of AMR is the appreciable misuse of antibiotics in ambulatory care, which can account for up to 95% of human utilisation. A principal area is the selling of antibiotics without a prescription. There is conflicting evidence in South Africa regarding this practice alongside rising AMR rates. Consequently, there is a need to explore this further, especially in more rural areas of South Africa. A pilot study was undertaken to address this. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A two-step descriptive approach involving a self-administered questionnaire amongst pharmacists and their assistants followed by cognitive interviews with some of the participants. RESULTS: Twenty-one responses were obtained from nine of the 11 community pharmacies invited to participate. Participating pharmacies were all independently owned. Ten of the 21 participants admitted dispensing antibiotics without a prescription, including both adults and children, representing five of the nine participating pharmacies. A minority dispensed antibiotics before recommending suitable over-the-counter medicines. These high rates were exacerbated by patient pressure. There were issues with the length of the questionnaire and some of the phraseology, which will be addressed in the main study. CONCLUSION: There were concerns with the extent of purchasing antibiotics without a prescription in this pilot in South Africa study. Key issues will be explored further in the main study. en_US
dc.description.department Pharmacology en_US
dc.description.sdg SDG-03:Good heatlh and well-being en_US
dc.description.sdg SDG-12:Responsible consumption and production en_US
dc.description.uri http://www.aihbonline.com/ en_US
dc.identifier.citation Sono, T.M., Maluleke, M.T., Jelic, A.G., Campbell, S., Markovic-Pekovic, V., Schellack, N., et al. Potential strategies to limit inappropriate purchasing of antibiotics without a prescription in a rural province in South Africa: Pilot study and the implications. Advances in Human Biology 2024;14: 60-67, doi : 10.4103/aihb.aihb_127_23. en_US
dc.identifier.issn 2321-8568 (print)
dc.identifier.issn 2348-4691 (online)
dc.identifier.other 10.4103/aihb.aihb_127_23
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/2263/97701
dc.language.iso en en_US
dc.publisher Medknow Publications en_US
dc.rights © 2024 Advances in Human Biology. This article is available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License (CC BY-NC-SA). en_US
dc.subject Antibiotics en_US
dc.subject AWaRe classification en_US
dc.subject Education en_US
dc.subject Health policy en_US
dc.subject Pharmacists en_US
dc.subject Purchasing antibiotics without a prescription en_US
dc.subject South Africa (SA) en_US
dc.subject Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) en_US
dc.subject Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) en_US
dc.subject Access, Watch, Reserve (AWaRe) en_US
dc.subject SDG-03: Good health and well-being en_US
dc.subject SDG-12: Responsible consumption and production en_US
dc.title Potential strategies to limit inappropriate purchasing of antibiotics without a prescription in a rural province in South Africa : pilot study and the implications en_US
dc.type Article en_US


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