Abstract

IRRATIONAL PRESCRIPTION WRITING PRACTICES AMONG PRIVATE PRACTITIONERS IN URBAN AREAS OF WEST BENGAL

Aritra Ghosh*, Suvadip Biswas, Saikat Kumar Dalui, Krishnendu Mondal, Mithilesh Haldar and Supreeti Biswas

Abstract

Prescription is a main tool of communication between patient and physician. Though in prescription, physicians usually make many errors which lead to dreadful conditions. In this study we tried to figure out those errors among private practitioners in urban area. A total of 1132 private practitioners‟ prescriptions irrespective of clinical expertisation were collected and audited. Omitted information included physician‟s address (absent in 29.3%), signature (in 19.9%), registration number (77.3%) and date (24%). The patient‟s name was missing in 26.9% of instances, patient‟s address in 91.1% and age in 27.4% prescriptions. Only 37.4% prescriptions in our study contained a diagnosis or indication of drug use. Dose and dosage form were not mentioned in 56.9% and 7.5% prescriptions whereas duration of drug use was omitted in almost 45% prescriptions. In this study on average 3.32 drugs were prescribed per prescription. Drugs prescribed in generic name were 0.008%. Antibiotics and injections were prescribed in 36.2% and 9.1% encounters respectively. Drugs prescribed from Essential Drug List (EDL) in this study were 32.3%. So prescriptions were written in many occasions irrationally and this trend was very high among urban private practitioners.

Keywords: Prescription, Essential Drug List, audit, legibility.