Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Over-the-Counter Drug Use Among Medical Students in Fakeeh College: A...

Background Over-the-counter (OTC) drugs are medicines sold without a medical prescription to treat common and temperate medical conditions. Unfortunately, the misconception that OTC drugs are devoid of any harm to users has become established as a commonly held belief. While it is true that most of them are relatively safe, if administered in moderation, misuse is usually associated with the intake of excessive amounts and is burdened with life-threatening consequences. This study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of OTC medication use and related factors among medical students at Fakeeh College for Medical Sciences in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Subject and methods This cross-sectional study was conducted among medical students at Fakeeh University in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed among medical students using an online platform. The questionnaire includes socio-demographic characteristics and a questionnaire to assess OTC drugs' knowledge, attitude, and practice.  Results Of the 349 medical students, 86.5% were female students, and 52.4% were aged between 21 and 23 years old. The rate of OTC drugs used among medical students was 75.9%. Students who believed that OTC drugs are approved for self-care and those who experienced side effects due to OTC drugs were the significant users of OTC drugs. Approximately 25.5% had positive attitudes toward OTC drugs, 61.6% were neutral, and only 12.9% had negative attitudes. Senior medical students who enrolled in medicine demonstrated better attitudes toward OTC drugs than the rest of the students. Conclusion This study supports the literature that there is a growing number of medical students who are using OTC drugs. Regardless of their safety and efficacy, students demonstrated an optimistic attitude toward them. More efforts are needed to increase the knowledge of students about the harmful effects of the excessive use of OTC medication.