Knowledge, Attitude and Practice Towards Reading Medicine Leaflets of Prepackaged Medication Among Postgraduate Students of the University of Ibadan, Ibadan Nigeria

The complexity of medication use necessitates understanding medicine leaflets, especially among postgraduate students. These leaflets provide crucial information on dosage, side effects, and contraindications. However, the extent to which postgraduate students read and comprehend these leaflets varies, influenced by stress and time constraints. Assessing their knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) towards reading these leaflets can identify gaps and barriers. This study was therefore designed to investigate the knowledge, attitude and practice of postgraduate students towards reading of pre-packaged medication leaflets. A cross-sectional survey design was adopted for the study, and a multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select 216 consenting respondents. A pretested self-administered questionnaire was used as a tool for data collection. Analysis of reading pre-packaged medication leaflet based on knowledge was on a 5-point scale. Knowledge score of 0-1, 2-3 and 4-5 were rated as poor, fair and good respectively. Attitude was on a 14-point scale. Attitude score of 0-7 and 8-14 were categorised as negative and positive, respectively. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics, Chi-square test and Fisher exact tests were used to test for level of associations. Statistical significance was set to p<0.05. Respondents’ age was 16-55 years with a range of 39 years, 67.9% were male. Most of the respondents (56.9%) were Christian, 34.9% were single, and 16.3% were from the faculty of public health. The majority of the respondents (80.9%) were knowledge about the primary purpose of medication leaflet. The majority (98.1%) correctly indicated that the doctor should be contacted when a medication shows side effects. The majority (93.3%) of the respondents had a god knowledge of what reading leaflet of pre-packaged medication entails. One-third (33.0%) of the respondents indicated that the Information they obtain while searching online is enough. The majority (79.8%) reported to have changed medication use based on the information provided in medicine leaflets. The findings of this study underscore the importance of addressing knowledge, attitude and practice towards reading medicine leaflets of pre-packaged medications among Postgraduate students of the University of Ibadan. Many students experience stress and difficulty in comprehending these leaflets, pointing to substantial barriers. Therefore, health promotion strategies must address these gaps and barriers by providing comprehensive and accessible educational interventions.