Drug Labels And Advertisements: Extent Of Use As Sources Of Drug Information By Healthcare Professionals In Lagos, Nigeria
Keywords:
Drug Labels, Advertisement, Drug information, healthcare providers, NigeriaAbstract
Drug labels and advertisement are essential tools through which useful information that influence choice and provide instruction on safe and effective use of drug products are conveyed to healthcare professionals and patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the
extent of use of labels and advertisement as sources of drug information by healthcare providers in Lagos, Nigeria. In a cross sectional
survey of healthcare providers, a Likert-type questionnaire was used to evaluate the respondent's sources of drug information and their extent of use. Summary scores ≥ 3.0 (mid-point) on the Likert scale for each identified source of drug information shows a greater extent of use compared to lower scores. Inferential analysis was done by calculation of student t-test and one-way ANOVA as appropriate. P-values less than 0.05 were interpreted as significant. The internet (3.91), professional colleagues (3.96) and Emdex (3.89) were found to be the most frequently used sources of drug information. Usage of literature inserts/drug labels (3.28), advertisement medium such as product launch (3.59) and medical journals (3.53) were found to be above the mid-point in terms of usage. Males are more likely to use physician desk reference (P=0.0082) and Professionals with years of experience less than five are most likely to rely on labels and drug advertisement (p=0.0006).However, Doctors and pharmacists appear to significantly use the internet as a source of drug information than Nurses (P=0.0018).Healthcare professionals use Commercial and non-commercial sources of drug information; the extent of use of drug labels and adverts is above average hence adequate government policy and regulation should be implemented to ensure they have appropriate, relevant, and up to date information to assist healthcare professionals take informed and cost effective patient care decisions.
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