COMPREENSÃO DOS PACIENTES E QUALIDADE DAS PRESCRIÇÕES MEDICAMENTOSAS NA ATENÇÃO PRIMÁRIA À SAÚDE

Abstract

The use of medication is the most widely used therapeutic intervention in Primary Health Care (PHC). When prescribed and used correctly, medicines play a fundamental role, but if there are any flaws in the prescription, this can lead to problems in the next phases, affecting patient safety. The World Health Organization reports that more than half of patients are not treated correctly or do not know their treatment, causing waste and damaging the health of users, the economy and the environment. Therefore, the aim of this study was to understand how patients understand their medication prescriptions, to trace the socio-economic profile of patients and to identify the most commonly prescribed medications. It also aims to analyze the accuracy and completeness of prescriptions, investigate patients' level of understanding of their treatments and propose solutions to facilitate access to medicines and improve the quality of prescriptions. A cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach was carried out in 6 public Primary Health Care pharmacies in the municipality of Coxim, in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul. Convenience sampling was carried out of prescriptions presented by patients aged 18 or over. Data was collected during the pharmacies' opening hours, from Monday to Friday, between October 2023 and July 2024, through interviews with the application of an instrument with characterization questions and an instrument to assess the level of knowledge of prescriptions in Primary Health Care. Guidelines described by the World Health Organization and in accordance with current legislation were used to assess the quality of prescriptions. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics (absolute and relative frequencies) and association tests, as well as the Prevalence Ratio with a 95% confidence interval, adopting a significance level of 5%. This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul, in accordance with opinion number 6.309.721. 264 patients were interviewed, with a predominance of females (64.8%), with an average age of 53 years and a monthly income of less than R$ 1,000.00 in 42.8% of the cases. The data revealed that although 58.3% of the participants knew the name of the drug prescribed, only 35.6% were aware of the time of use and 31.1% reported needing more information. In addition, 57.2% of prescriptions were completely filled, showing difficulties in accessing medicines. The survey also revealed that polypharmacy is a frequent challenge, with 34.5% of patients receiving four or more drugs per prescription. Incomplete information on prescriptions, such as the absence of an indication of the route of administration and the duration of treatment, was frequently found, which can compromise patient safety and the effectiveness of drug therapy. The results reinforce the need for actions aimed at continuing education, health education and strengthening pharmaceutical care. Ensuring that patients correctly understand their prescriptions and enabling full access to properly prescribed medicines is an essential step towards the rational use of medicines and the promotion of safer and more efficient Primary Health Care. Keywords: drug prescriptions; drug use; patient harm; basic health indicators; family health strategy, family health.