The trend of key results and strategies for improvement of Herbal Medicine Consumption Survey

Objectives: To identify changes in the subjects and methods of Herbal Medicine Consumption Survey, and analyze trend of the key results Methods: The population, methods, and items of the basic reports of all Surveys on Consumption of Herbal Medicine(HM) were organized in a time-series manner. The analysis items were trend in the purchase of standardized HM; consumption value share, and price of prepared HM; type of herbal dispensary; and awareness of HM policy in Koran Medicine(KM) institutions. Results: The price of HM preparations showed an upward trend in 2011, 2014, and 2017 surveys, and decreased in the 2020 survey. However, despite this recent decrease, the 2021 survey also saw the highest proportion of HM users reporting that price of herbal decoction is expensive. Furthermore, the demand for expanded coverage of herbal decoction was the greatest for the expansion of health insurance benefits. Efforts such as adjusting the number of covered diseases and the cost of health insurance coverage would be necessary. Regarding decoction dispensaries the proportion of HM hospitals using only extramural herbal dispensaries increased. Finally, the consumption of HM and the size of the HM industry has continued to expand due to the large-scale branding of KM institutions and the expansion of health insurance coverage. Conclusion: Future surveys must standardize and unify the items for the time-series continuity and compare the results with government statistics reports on HM to increase reliability. Moreover, specialized survey items may be developed for KM, to establish a better and efficient distribution system for domestic HMs.