Title:Evaluation of Drug Use Based on the WHO Prescribing Indicator in Mizan-Tepi University Teaching Hospital, South Western Ethiopia: A Cross-sectional Study
VOLUME: 15 ISSUE: 5
Author(s):Solomon Hambisa*, Rediet Feleke, Ameha Zewudie and Mohammed Yimam
Affiliation:Department of Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Mizan-Tepi University, Mizan-Teferi, Department of Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Mizan-Tepi University, Mizan-Teferi, Department of Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Mizan-Tepi University, Mizan-Teferi, Department of Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Mizan-Tepi University, Mizan-Teferi
Keywords:Drug use, prescribing indicators, World Health Organization, Ethiopia, medicine, antibiotics.
Abstract:
Background: Rational drug use comprises aspects of prescribing, dispensing, and patient
use of medicines for different health problems. This study is aimed to assess drug prescribing practices
based on the world health organization prescribing indicators in Mizan-Tepi University teaching
hospital.
Methods: An institutional-based, retrospective, cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate the
prescribing practices in Mizan-Tepi University teaching hospital. Data were collected based on the
World health organization's drug use indicators using prescription papers. A total of 600 prescriptions,
written for a 1-year time, dispensed through the general outpatient pharmacy of the hospital
were collected by a systematic random sampling method from Mizan-Tepi University teaching
hospital.
Results: The present study found that the average number of drugs per prescription was 2.04 ± 0.87
in Mizan-Tepi University teaching hospital, with a range between 1 and 5. Prescribing by generic
name was 97.6%, and 47.8% of prescriptions contained antibiotics in the hospital. 27.7% of prescriptions
contained at least one injectable medication in Mizan-Tepi University teaching hospital.
From prescribed drugs, 96.7% of them were prescribed from the Ethiopian essential drug list.
Conclusion: Present study indicated that the average number of drugs prescribed per encounter, the
percentage of generic prescribing, and prescribing from the EDL were close to the optimal value.
However, the percentage of encounters with antibiotics and injections prescribed was found to be
very high. Thus, the study highlights some improvements in prescribing habits, particularly by focusing
on the inappropriate consumption of antibiotics and injections.
