Medicamentos para adultos mayores: percepciones y adquisición en farmacias privadas de Morelos, México
Authors
María Gudalupe Ruelas González
Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública. Dirección de Determinantes y Retos de los Sistemas de Salud. Centro de Investigación en Sistemas de Salud.
Blanca Estela Pecastre Villafuerte
Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública. Dirección de Determinantes y Retos de los Sistemas de Salud. Centro de Investigación en Sistemas de Salud.
Angélica Ángela Llerenas
Instituto de Salud Pública. Dirección de Enfermedades Crónicas. Centro de Investigación en Salud Poblacional
Objective: Analyze characteristics medication acquisition in senior citizens, with or without prescriptions, as well as their perceptions. Materials and methods: Qualitative and quantitative study design, carried out in October through November of 2006, through a random, probabilistic, stratified sample. 52 private pharmacies were selected in the state of Morelos, Mexico, for a sample of 324 senior citizens the purchase medications. Results: Of the whole population, 65% acquired the medications without a prescription. Three fourths bought homeopathic medications. The medications most commonly bought were analgesics and antibiotics. Prices were 2.4 times higher when they were prescribed by doctors. Apart from medications, they also used folk remedies, but do not express understanding of possible side effects, rather, they trust in pharmacy employees. Conclusions: Due to the high cost of prescribed medications, many senior citizens prefer to acquire them without a prescription. That, along with the use of folk remedies and the lack of knowledge of their possible side effects, makes them vulnerable to adverse health effects. It is possible that self medication and its consequences could be avoided with efficient health promotion and quality health care services that fulfill the needs of the population
Ruelas González, M. G., Pecastre Villafuerte, B. E., & Llerenas, A. Ángela. (2012). Medicamentos para adultos mayores: percepciones y adquisición en farmacias privadas de Morelos, México. Revista Chilena De Salud Pública, 16(2), p. 146–155. Retrieved from https://revistaeggp.uchile.cl/index.php/RCSP/article/view/20299
