The effects of DAGUSIBU education on the level of community knowledge in obtaining, using, storing, and disposing of drugs in West Java, Indonesia

Abstract

Background: In 2022, health products were the best-selling category in the marketplace. Over-the-counter medicines are the only types of drugs that can be sold online. However, in reality, many prescription drugs are being traded online. A lack of public awareness about purchasing drugs online can have negative consequences, such as buying counterfeit and hazardous medicines and drugs without distribution permits. A community health initiative for public education, DAGUSIBU, is being powered by pharmacists and must be encouraged.     Objective: To educate the public about the DAGUSIBU and measure the changes in public knowledge after the education process.     Methods: A quasi-experimental one-group pre-test and post-test method was used to design the study. Univariate and bivariate Wilcoxon tests were used to analyse the data.     Results: The level of public knowledge before education was 49.41% in the poor category, 36.72% in the good category, and 13.87% in the adequate category. Following education, the respondents’ level of knowledge was classified as good (48.46%), adequate (41.12%) and poor (10.42%). The p-value of the level of knowledge before and after education was < 0.05, according to the Wilcoxon test.     Conclusion: DAGUSIBU education in digital platforms to obtain drugs had a significant impact on public knowledge