Knowledge, Attitude and Practice (KAP) Towards Disposal of Unused and Expired Medications: an Assessment Among Patients

Abstract

Introduction: Medicines play a very significant role in treating many diseases, but it is essential to dispose of them properly at the treatment's end. Therefore, knowledge and awareness of proper drug disposal are necessary for a safe environment; this deficiency can lead to many problems, including environmental pollution and health hazards directly or indirectly. Hence, the study aimed to assess the knowledge, practice, and awareness of disposing of unused/expired drugs among the patient population. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was conducted in a tertiary care teaching hospital. The study includes a total of 399 participants. The questionnaire consisted of demographical data and multiple-choice questions associated with knowledge and awareness of drug disposal. The collected data is expressed in percentages. Results: Out of 390 respondents, 49% were males and 51% were females. It was found that the most expected disposal pattern of expired/ unused drugs was through household trash (63%). A total of 300 (77%) were cautious of the consequence of inappropriate disposal. We observed that 20(5%) participants had partial knowledge about proper drug disposal, and 63% (n=245) did not practice safe disposal of the medicines. However, 66%(n=256) of participants sought to implement the National Drug Take Back program. Conclusion: Our study aimed to create an awareness to connect the gaps between knowledge and practice of proper and environmentally safe disposal methods of expired/ unused drugs among the overall population.