Nonprescription medication purchases and the role of pharmacists as healthcare workers in self-medication in Istanbul

Abstract

In Turkey, some drugs call be purchased from pharmacists without a prescription and there is no legal classification corresponding to the international term "over-the-counter drugs". The purpose of this study was to identify these non-prescribed drugs and to define the role of pharmacists in their sale and their use in primary healthcare. This cross-sectional study was carried out in Istanbul between December 1, 2003, and August 31, 2004. Seventy-three of the 901 pharmacies in two districts of Istanbul were chosen with systematic sampling, and information concerning drug sales and pharmacists' behavior regarding primary healthcare services was collected by observations as well as by interviews with the pharmacists.