Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy (한국임상약학회지)

Korean College Of Clinical Pharmacy (한국임상약학회)
권호 표지

Consumer Perspectives and Utilization of Drug Information in Korea

국내 의약품정보에 대한 소비자의 시각 및 활용도

  • Lee, Iyn-Hyang (College of Pharmacy, Yeungnam University) ;
  • Kye, Seunghee (Department of Preventive Medicine & Public Health, School of Medicine, Ajou University) ;
  • Lee, Sukhyang (College of Pharmacy, Ajou University)
  • 이인향 (영남대학교 약학대학) ;
  • 계승희 (아주대학교 의과대학 예방의학교실) ;
  • 이숙향 (아주대학교 약학대학)
  • Received : 2013.01.17
  • Accepted : 2013.10.01
  • Published : 2013.12.31
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Abstract

Purpose: This study aims to investigate consumers' demand of and perspective on drug information domestically available and uncover hurdles that they faced while utilizing information. Methods: We conducted a survey of 101 consumers, face-to-face after obtaining informed consent. Chi-squared, or Fisher's exact tests, and multivariate logistic models were used to investigate the association between participants' perceptions and characteristics. Results: As results, participants showed the highest demand for "Adverse effects >90%"; "Drug interactions/Dosage/Drug-food interactions/Indication >80%", and utilized package inserts (52%), doctors (41%) and pharmacists (36%) most often as information sources. Generally, the most common difficulty consumers suffered with was that "it is hard to understand (51%)". With public sources of drug information, sixty one percent of participants were "unaware of the provision of information", resulting in strikingly low usage rates (5~11%). Subgroup analyses indicated that the older (${\geq}50$ years) and the disadvantaged might have been placed in the blind spot of information mostly developed online (p<0.05).Conclusion: In conclusion, public sources of drug information that have been developed online might fail to meet consumers' demand. Greater efforts should be made to balance the development of the information sources between online and offline, and to increase accessibility of the established information sources.

Keywords

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