PREVALENCE AND FACTORS INFLUENCING SELF-MEDICATION

This study assessed the prevalence, awareness, influencing factors, and drug usage patterns of self-medication among undergraduate students at the University of Benin. A cross-sectionalsurvey was conducted with 355 students selected from the Faculty of Art using a multistage sampling technique. A structured questionnaire was used to assess their demographic characteristics, level of awareness regarding risks and consequences of self-medications, prevalence rate of self-medication, and factors influencing self-medication practices. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 27.0 was used for data analysis. The findings revealed that 79.7% of respondents engaged in self-medication at least sometimes, with47.9% always practicing it. Pain relievers, such as paracetamol and ibuprofen, were the mostcommonly used drugs (77.2%), followed by antimalarials (61.7%). Despite high awareness ofthe risks—such as drug resistance (xത = 3.52) and adverse health effects from overdosing (xത=3.55), self-medication remains widespread. Factors significantly influencing this practice included easy access to drugs without prescriptions (χ² = 36.731, p = 0.001), long hospital waiting times (χ² = 4.834, p = 0.028), high treatment costs (χ² = 5.159, p = 0.023), and advicefrom non-medical sources (χ² = 9.383, p = 0.002). Hence, the study concluded that self medication is highly prevalent among undergraduate students at the University of Benin, despite a generally high level of awareness about its associated risks and consequences. However, recommendations included the need for regulatory, educational, and healthcare system interventions to promote safe medication practices among undergraduates.