Health complaints and use of medicines among adolescents in Malta

Objective: To investigate self-reported health complaints and the use of medicines among adolescents in Malta. Methods: A self-administered questionnaire was used to survey self-reported health complaints, the use and the sources of medicines that had been accessed, during the preceding 3 months among adolescents attending secondary schools in Malta. A stratified random sample design generated a sample size of 514 students. The health complaints and use of medicines that were investigated included ear problems/hay fever/cold/cough, headache, skin problems, sport injuries, indigestion/diarrhoea/constipation, eye problems and menstrual pain (for girls). The use of vitamins and antibiotics was also investigated. Results: A total of 477 students participated in the final data collection. Correct information was submitted by 474 students, (aged 14-16 years), who formed the analytical sample, of which 53.8% were girls. The students reported a mean number of 2.70 (SD = 1.39) out of a total of 7 health complaints and 90.3% reported using at least 1 medicine during the preceding 3 months. The community pharmacy was cited as the most commonly accessed source for most of the medicines that were investigated. A proportion of 24.3% of the students had taken at least 1 medicine without adult guidance during the preceding 3 months. Almost 10% of those who had taken antibiotics, had accessed them from the home medicine cabinet. Conclusion: A high proportion of adolescents in Malta reported the use of medicines to alleviate the symptoms of common health complaints. This result is concordant with previous research carried out in the United Kingdom, Germany, Slovakia and Kuwait. A considerable proportion of students in this study had obtained medicines without adult guidance and accessed antibiotics from the home medicine cabinet. This highlights the importance of carefully designed education programs for adolescents that will integrate information about the proper use of medicines.peer-reviewe

Knowledge and sources of information about medicines among adolescents in Malta

Objective: To investigate knowledge of medicines and sources of information about medicines among adolescents in Malta. Methods: A self-administered questionnaire was used to survey knowledge of medicines and information sources among adolescents attending secondary schools in Malta. A random stratified sample design generated a sample size of 514 students. Knowledge of medicines was investigated by questions that included topics about the efficacy of medicines, proper communication during a medical consultation, the safety of medicines, antibiotic use and pictograms. Results: The analytical sample, of which 53.8% were girls, was made up of 474 students, aged 14- 16 years. The students obtained a mean score of 22.92 points (SD = 4.31) out of a maximum of 32 points for medicine knowledge. More than 30.0% of the respondents did not mark the correct answer for 40.6% of the questions that investigated knowledge of medicines. The family physician, community pharmacist and parents were the sources of information that were mostly cited. A proportion of 4.4% had obtained information from the teacher. A quarter of the respondents (24.7%) had obtained information from friends/schoolmates, young relatives or the media, generally television (17.3%). Conclusion: Although the level of knowledge about medicines among this study sample of Maltese students was good, there appeared to be particular misconceptions with regard to important aspects associated with the proper use of medicines. These findings highlight the need to educate adolescents about the proper use of medicines. The most important information providers about medicines appeared to be the physician, pharmacist and parents. It is being suggested that education campaigns should be organized in order to help parents guide adolescents on how to use medicines appropriately. In addition, adolescents would benefit if more information about the proper use of medicines would be disseminated by means of television programs and school-based health education curricula.peer-reviewe

An analysis of gender differences in self-reported heaith, use of medicines and access to information sources about medicines among adolescents

Adolescence is a key period in the emergence of gender differences in health that persist into adulthood. Knowledge about health-related gender differences among adolescents could be instrumental in informing policy and practice to effect health improvement among this age group. The main objectives of this study were lherefore to investigate gender differences in self-reported health complaints and use of medicines during the preceding 3 months and access to information sources about medicines among adolescents in Malta. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed among adolescents attending secondary schools in Malta. A stratified :-andom sample design generated a sample size of 514 students. Common health complaints, use of medicines, and sources of information about medicines were investigated by means of author-designed checklists. The analytical sample was formed from 474 usable questionnaires collected from students aged 14-16 years, of which .8% were females. In general, a femaie excess emerged for health complaints and use of medicines except for sport injuries and use of vitamins. Gender differences were statistically significant for a female excess in the retrieval of information from the package insert (p < .001 ), parents or adult relatives (p < .01) and friends or schoolmates (p < .05). The findings of this study underscore the need for awareness of gender differences in the health o:f adolescents among health care providers, policy makers, and educators. An important implication of the findings is lhat the health needs of adolescents could be more equitably addressed by adopting a holistic patient-oriented approach particular to the health needs of each individual.peer-reviewe

Knowledge and sources of information about medicines among adolescents in Malta.

ABSTRACT* Objective: To investigate knowledge of medicines and sources of information about medicines among adolescents in Malta. Methods: A self-administered questionnaire was used to survey knowledge of medicines and information sources among adolescents attending secondary schools in Malta. A random stratified sample design generated a sample size of 514 students. Knowledge of medicines was investigated by questions that included topics about the efficacy of medicines, proper communication during a medical consultation, the safety of medicines, antibiotic use and pictograms. Results: The analytical sample, of which 53.8% were girls, was made up of 474 students, aged 14- 16 years. The students obtained a mean score of 22.92 points (SD = 4.31) out of a maximum of 32 points for medicine knowledge. More than 30.0% of the respondents did not mark the correct answer for 40.6% of the questions that investigated knowledge of medicines. The family physician, community pharmacist and parents were the sources of information that were mostly cited. A proportion of 4.4% had obtained information from the teacher. A quarter of the respondents (24.7%) had obtained information from friends/schoolmates, young relatives or the media, generally television (17.3%). Conclusion: Although the level of knowledge about medicines among this study sample of Maltese students was good, there appeared to be particular misconceptions with regard to important aspects associated with the proper use of medicines. These findings highlight the need to educate adolescents about the proper use of medicines. The most important information providers about medicines appeared to be the physician, pharmacist and parents. It is being suggested that education campaigns should be organized in order to help parents guide adolescents on how to use medicines appropriately. In addition, adolescents would benefit if more information about the proper use of medicines would be disseminated by means of television programs and school-based health education curriculaRESUMEN Objetivo: Investigar el conocimiento y las fuentes de información sobre medicamentos entre adolescentes en Malta. Métodos: Se usó un cuestionario auto-administrado para investigar el conocimiento sobre medicamentos y las fuentes de información entre adolescentes de escuelas secundarias en Malta. Un diseño de muestra aleatorio estratificado generó una muestra de 514 estudiantes. El conocimiento sobre medicamentos se investigó con preguntas que incluían temas sobre la eficacia de los medicamentos, la correcta comunicación en la consulta médica, la seguridad de los medicamentos, el uso de antibióticos y los pictogramas. Resultados: La muestra analítica, de las cuales 53,8% eran mujeres, se construyó con 474 estudiantes de 14 a 16 años. Los estudiantes obtuvieron una puntuación media de 22,92 puntos (DE=4,31) de un máximo de 32 puntos para el conocimiento de medicamentos. Más del 30,0% de los respondentes no marcó la respuesta correcta para el 40,6% de las preguntas del cuestionario. El médico de familia, el farmacéutico comunitario y los padres fueron las fuentes de información más citadas. Un 4,4% había obtenido la información del profesor. Un cuarto de los respondentes (24,7%) había obtenido la información de amigos/compañeros, parientes jóvenes o los medios de comunicación, generalmente la televisión (17,3%). Concusión: Aunque el nivel de conocimientos en esta muestra de estudiantes malteses fue bueno, pareció que había errores de concepto específicos en torno a importantes aspectos relacionados con el uso correcto de medicamentos. Estos hallazgos ensalzan la necesidad de educar a los adolescentes en al uso correcto de medicamentos Los proveedores de información sobre medicamentos más importantes parecieron ser el médico, el farmacéutico y los padres. Se sugiere que deberían organizarse campañas de información para ayudar a que los padres guíen a los adolescentes en cómo utilizar los medicamentos apropiadamente. Además, los adolescentes se beneficiarían si se diseminase más información sobre el uso correcto de medicamentos por televisión y en el currículo de la educación escola