Antibiotic self-medication among healthcare students in Pakistan: A dual-center cross-sectional study.
Background: Antibiotic self-medication is an emerging global health challenge, contributing significantly to antimicrobial resistance development. Healthcare students' knowledge and practices are particularly crucial, given their future roles as medical professionals. Objectives: This investigation...
| Publicado en: | Work Vol. 83; no. 3; pp. 713 - 725 |
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| Autores principales: | , , , , , , , , , , |
| Formato: | research tables/charts Journal Article |
| Publicado: |
Sage Publications Inc.
Mar2026
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| Acceso en línea: | Ver este registro en EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=192008291&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ccm uiTerm: 192008291 longDbName: CINAHL Complete uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: dissinfo: jinfo: jid: 10519815 3RC jtl: Work issn: 10519815 maglogo: N pubinfo: dt: Mar2026 vid: 83 iid: 3 pid: 344 pub: Sage Publications Inc. place: Thousand Oaks, California artinfo: ui: 192008291 188465399 192008291 192008291 10.1177/10519815251382367 192008291 ppf: 713 ppct: 12 formats: fmt: – @attributes: type: T – @attributes: type: P tig: atl: Antibiotic self-medication among healthcare students in Pakistan: A dual-center cross-sectional study. aug: au: Rehman, Sadia Sarfraz, Muhammad Raza Tariq, Hafsa Ismail, Aasia Mansoor, Mehwish Salman, Amber Ajaz, Sami Ijaz, Muneeza Hasnat, Abdullah Mehmood, Hamid Ijaz, Misbah affil: Department of Biochemistry, Bahria University Health Sciences Campus, Karachi, Pakistan sug: subj: Self Medication Psychosocial Factors Antibiotics Students, Medical Psychosocial Factors Student Knowledge Evaluation Student Attitudes Evaluation Pakistan Human Male Female Young Adult Multicenter Studies Cross Sectional Studies Students, Undergraduate Convenience Sample Structured Questionnaires Pearson's Correlation Coefficient Chi Square Test P-Value Data Analysis Software Descriptive Statistics Amoxicillin Azithromycin Respiratory Tract Diseases Male Female ab: Background: Antibiotic self-medication is an emerging global health challenge, contributing significantly to antimicrobial resistance development. Healthcare students' knowledge and practices are particularly crucial, given their future roles as medical professionals. Objectives: This investigation sought to assess antibiotic self-medication patterns among Pakistani healthcare students by examining their knowledge, attitudes, and practices, while identifying contributing factors and prevalence rates. Methods: A cross-sectional analysis was implemented at two Pakistani universities, involving 1340 undergraduate healthcare students selected through convenience sampling. Data were collected using a structured, validated questionnaire that evaluated sociodemographic factors as well as participants' understanding, perspectives, and behaviors regarding antibiotic self-medication. Knowledge and attitude measurements were classified as poor/negative or good/positive. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Results: The study revealed that 68.8% of respondents practiced antibiotic self-medication. Despite 63.3% demonstrating adequate antibiotic knowledge, 53.4% exhibited negative self-medication attitudes. Knowledge distribution varied according to academic program and year of study. DPT students showed the highest self-medication frequency at 77.3%. Amoxicillin (56%) and Azithromycin (31.3%) emerged as predominant choices, primarily selected for convenience (77.5%) and respiratory symptoms (50.4%). Previous prescriptions significantly affected antibiotic selection. Analysis revealed a substantial correlation between knowledge levels and attitudes toward antibiotic usage (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Despite adequate knowledge levels among participants, a concerning trend of negative attitudes toward antibiotic self-medication practices was observed. These findings emphasize the critical need for comprehensive educational interventions and strengthened regulatory frameworks to minimize inappropriate antibiotic use among healthcare students, which is essential for addressing the growing challenge of antimicrobial resistance, and to reduce inappropriate antibiotic use ensuring both patient safety and future professional performance. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: research tables/charts Journal Article ougenre: Article language: English refInfo: holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
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