Patient safety: Contributions from a task analysis study on medicine usage by Brazilians

Abstract

Medicine misuse in Brazil is one of the most relevant health issues affecting millions of people. This paper discusses the results of a study on usage of five different medicines by 60 adult Brazilians. Problems in task performance occurred with all medicines, especially those requiring measuring doses and object manipulation. Deficiencies in the design of the medicine inserts were also found. The outcomes enable to conclude that improvements in the design of instructions for patients and of medicine inserts, as well as of medicine bottles/containers are necessary to facilitate their use by Brazilians. © 2009 Springer Berlin Heidelberg.