A Study to Assess The Knowledge and Practice of Healthcare Workers and The General Public About Generic and Branded Medicine In Bengaluru

Abstract

Background A generic drug is a pharmaceutical drug that contains the same chemical substance as a drug that was originally protected by chemical patents. The Indian government launched a project called the Jan Aushadhi Scheme to provide low-income people with unbranded quality medicines at affordable prices.Objective The study aimed to assess the knowledge and practice of healthcare workers and the general public about generic and branded drugs.Methodology It was a questionnaire-based cross-sectional study done with 150 respondents each from the general public and healthcare workers using a convenience sampling method.Results Among healthcare workers 52 had moderate and 48 had good knowledge and practice of generic medicines. Among the general public 65.3 had moderate and 34.7 had good knowledge of generic medicine and 30 had moderate and 70 had good practice. The study revealed that the age group 20-29 years had greater knowledge and participants with higher-level education had greater belief in the efficacy of generic medicine. The maximum 52 of the general public had agreed that if the doctor prescribes generic medicine then they will use generic medicine.Conclusion The study revealed that healthcare workers had more knowledge about generic medicine than the general public and the general public had better practice of generic medicine than healthcare workers. The study revealed that men were more knowledgeable about generic medicines than women among the general public.