Dangerous Drugs Distribution in Groceries A Case Study of rural district, Chiang Mai Thailand

Abstract

Chiang Mai is the second largest city of Thailand. Even though, it is the center of economic, education and cultural of the North, there are some rural areas nested in the mountain, far away from the city center. In the rural area, when people get sick, they usually try to treat themselves before going to a hospital or public health center. One risky health seeking behavior is buying medicines from a grocery store, where dangerous drugs can be found. This survey research was aimed to study an illegal or improper distribution of dangerous drugs in groceries in a rural community by exploring every grocery stores (n=355) in one rural district of Chiang Mai Province. Data was collected during January - February 2017 by a pharmacist and health promoting hospital staff. They visited each grocery, gathered information about medicines sold in the shop, and asked the owners about their sources of medicines and rationale for selling dangerous medicines. Descriptive statistics using frequencies and percentages were used for data analysis. Dangerous drugs were found in 165 community grocery stores (46.48 %). Among them, antibiotics were found in 88 stores (53.33 %). Other dangerous drugs included diclofenac (tablet), piroxicam (capsule), niclosamide (tablet), acetyl salicylic acid (powder), and others. The main reason of selling these medicines was to serve the customer's demand. Some owners reported that they used the medicines and found them good enough to see it at their store. They bought the dangerous drugs from wanderer merchants, from other groceries, or from drug stores. The distribution of dangerous drugs through community grocery stores put people at risk for improper use of medicines. Besides the legal management, health literacy and community empowerment for safety and rational use of medicines for self- care are needed.