Research Article

Self medication practice among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic in selected hospitals in Jos, Nigeria

*Emmanuel A, Achema G, Afoi BB and Maroof KR

Department of nursing science, Faculty of Medical sciences, University of Jos, Plateau state. Nigeria

*Corresponding Author E-mail: andyemma62@yahoo.com, andyemma62@gmail.com

Accepted 28 April, 2014

Abstract

A considerable proportion of pregnant women are exposed to drugs that have potential harm to their fetus. The aim of this study was to evaluate the self-medication among pregnant women attending antenatal in Jos. A convenience sampling was used to draw 120 participants from three selected hospital. Results reveal a high prevalence of self medication (85%) among the study group. Reasons for self medication were that, doctors are scarce and expensive to see, prior experience about the drug and illness is minor. The most frequently used category of drugs in this study was analgesic followed by antimalaria, vitamins, antacid, antibiotics and herbal remedies. It was concluded that dangers of using drugs in pregnancy should be emphasized during antenatal classes and women should not be allowed to have access to prescriptions.

Keywords: Self-medication, drugs, pregnant women, antenatal clinic, Jos