Evaluation of drug use habits of university students during the COVID-19 pandemic period

Introduction: In late 2019 a new virus called Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 has been identified. The virus that started to spread locally in some parts of China, has spread in an overwhelming speed across the globe and has caused a pandemic of respiratory illness. The pandemic has huge effect on the Rational drug use (RDU) which is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO); as the ability of individuals to obtain the appropriate drug, at the appropriate time and dose, at the lowest price and easily, according to their clinical findings and individual characteristics. It is shown that during the Covid-19 pandemic, confusion and misunderstanding of information about the pandemic, disease, and drugs has spread widely among the public. This study was conducted to evaluate the knowledge-attitudes-behaviors of university students regarding rational drug use during the COVID-19 epidemic. Materials & Methods: The ethics committee approved a 24-questions survey study which was filled by study participants with a total of 401 surveys collected. The collection was done by face-to-face interviews with enrolled students at Çukurova university campus's main Squares, Dining Hall, Library, Different faculties, and cafeterias. In this study, answers were collected of questions about demographic information, general attitude towards COVID-19 and drugs use, vitamins use, mineral and herbal medicines use, antibiotic drugs use, and the use of antidepressant drugs. After the data collection process, the data of each questionnaire was entered in the SPSS software for evaluation and statistical analysis. Results: In this study 401 university students participated, including 239 (59.6%) women and 162 (40.4%) men. 117 (29.2%) medicine students, 99 (24.7%) engineering students, 185 (46.1%) literature students. Regarding the general attitude and drug use regarding COVID-19, 378 (94.3%) of the participants stated that they had COVID-19 vaccine, and 23 (5.7%) did not. Of the vaccinated participants, 244 (64.5%) reported two doses, 123 (32.5%) three doses, and 11 (2.9%) one dose. Regarding the participants' use of vitamin, mineral and herbal medicines, 335 (83.5%) reported that they did not use any supplements, and 66 (16.5%) reported that they used supplements for protection against COVID-19. The participants' use findings of antibiotic drugs were follows; 381 (95%) reported that they did not use antibiotic drugs, and 20 (5%) reported that they used antibiotic drugs. Plus, the participants' use of antidepressant drugs were as follows; 389 (97%) reported that they did not use any antidepressant drugs, and 12 (3%) reported that they used antidepressant drugs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion: The results indicate high level of knowledge and positive attitudes and behaviors among students enrolled at Çukurova university in Adana, Turkey toward rational drug use during the COVID-19 pandemic. Keywords: Rational Drug Use, COVID-19, Pandemic, Coronavirus, Pharmacology