A Cross-sectional Study Assessing Prescriptions of a Tertiary Care Teaching Institute of Central India using the WHO Core Drug Indicators

Abstract

Introduction: The WHO has developed medication use indicators, including prescription indicators with an aim to evaluate the services provided to the population in regard to medications. With the help of these indicators, there will be constant watch on drug prescribing pattern in health care to avoid irrational prescribing.Objectives: The objective of the study was to find out the rationality of prescriptions by using the WHO core and complementary indicators.Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted in tertiary care teaching institute over 4 months. The outpatient department prescriptions were assessed for the rationality of the WHO core and complimentary indices.Results: A total of 600 prescriptions were assessed. Prescriptions with the antimicrobial agent were 270 (45%). 1139 (65.69%) drugs were prescribed with generic names while the rest 595 (34.31%) were prescribed by brand names. Prescriptions with banned fixed-dose combinations were 22 (3.67%). A number of medicines prescribed from the national list of essential medicines (NLEM) were 1307 (75.37%) and 427 (24.63%) prescribed were not included in NLEM. The average number of drugs per prescription was 2.89 with a range from 2 to 8 drugs. 246 (41%) prescriptions contain one injectable drug and 48 (8 %) contain two injectable drugs. In 362 (60.33%) prescriptions, diagnosis was mentioned. In maximum prescriptions, 594 (99 %) the handwriting of the prescriber was legible, while in only 114 (19 %) prescriptions proper dose, duration, and frequency (DDF) of drugs prescribed was mentioned.Conclusions: In the present study prescribing practices for antibiotic and injectable drugs show deviation from the standard recommended by the WHO. Although the handwriting was legible, correct diagnosis, DDF was not mentioned in most of the prescriptions. The prescribers should be given continued medical education and standard treatment guidelines regarding rational prescribing to improve medical services in context to medication. KEY WORDS:Antibiotics, generics, injectables, rationality.