Recent Social Background and Consumer Views on Over-the-counter Drugs and Self-medication

Abstract

Recently, because the marked rise in medical expenses in Japan has become a major social problem, self-medication using OTC drugs in cases of minor health problems has attracted increasing attention. When people use OTC drugs for self-medication, they need support and/or advice from pharmacists on their proper use. This paper outlines recent revisions in the legal sales system of OTC drugs, the social background of self-medication, characteristics of OTC drugs and role of the pharmacists in providing consultation on OTC preparations. Next, consumers' views of self-medication and the OTC drug sales system are described based on the results of surveys performed after they attended an educational event on the proper use of OTC drugs. The survey of consumer views on the legal sales system of OTC drugs revealed that they were the most concerned about safety and convenience. From the survey of consumer views on self-medication, a significant percentage of the group who understood the meaning of the term "self-medication" practiced it in cases of minor health problems. Although no significant difference was seen between the groups who understood the term "self-medication" and those who did not in regard to the reading the drug package label and/or insert, a significant difference was found in their understanding of "The System for Sufferers from Adverse Drug Reactions". Therefore, it was clear that the consumers familiar with "self-medication" not only practiced it, but also understood the contents of drug package labels and/or inserts.