AN ASSESSMENT OF LAGOS RESIDENTS’ AWARENESS OF COUNTERFEIT MEDICINES AND ITS SOCIOECONOMIC INFLUENCES

ABSTRACT

Counterfeit medicines have dominated the drug distribution system in Nigeria for more than two decades. This has become a public health burden and the effect felt across all strata of the society, irrespective of socio-economic status. Considering the pivotal role that medicines play in the lives of people, both in maintaining health and combating diseases, counterfeit medicines pose grave consequences for public health as their use can escalate mortality and morbidity indices among the general populace. This study assessed the level of awareness of Lagos residents regarding counterfeit medicines and its socioeconomic influences on the populace. The study was designed cross-sectional survey of adults (18 years and above) who are residents of Lagos state. The sample size was calculated to be 385 using an online sample sizecalculator-Calculator.net, (from a population of 13,491,800, as estimated by theLagosStateBureau of Statistics in 2022. A structured questionnaire was the instrument of data collection, and 321 respondents returned their completed and valid questionnaires used in this study. The data was evaluated using descriptive statistics, and the results were expressed as frequencies and percentages. The result showed a high level of awareness of the presence of counterfeit medicines in the state (80%). More people took counterfeit medicines out of ignorance than socio-economic status (83.5%), and untoward health events/risks were found to be associated with taking counterfeit medicines, ranging from treatment failure, microbial resistance, organdamagetodeath. From these findings, it is recommended that existing awareness programs be sustained to keep the public constantly aware of the existence of counterfeit medicines as such, take steps to avoid their use.

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https://www.academia.edu/128815737/AN_ASSESSMENT_OF_LAGOS_RESIDENTS_AWARENESS_OF_COUNTERFEIT_MEDICINES_AND_ITS_SOCIOECONOMIC_INFLUENCES