Table 3 Patients’ practices in response to medicine shortages (patients’ specific theme)
Themes | Subthemes | Categories | Supporting quotations |
|---|---|---|---|
Patients’ practices in response to medicine shortages | Preference for type of healthcare professional to seek advice when medicine is not available | • Few preferred physicians • Very few preferred pharmacists • Majority preferred non-pharmacist pharmacy worker | “I ask physician because he is a person authorized to do so. So, I take medicine that he prescribes. Because best practice is, medicine should be prescribed by the person who has diagnosed the disease.” (Patient 5) “If there is a pharmacist in the pharmacy, then I usually ask him for the alternative brand. At big pharmacies, pharmacist is very cooperative and they guide me about my medicine and help me understand how to take it” (Patient 6) “I seek advice from dispenser. Dispensers know everything about medicines, their brands and prices and they are better than pharmacists and physicians. They even know where that medicine will be available in the market...” (Patient 2) |
Other approaches | Self-decision | “Or if there is general fever or pain medicine shortage then I take any available brand because I know all such medicine work the same” (Patient 9) | |
Ask family or friends | “… If any family member has same illness or is in the medical field then I ask them…” (Patient 7) | ||
Forgo treatment | “When dispenser tells me about the shortage of the brand I asked for, then I know it will be not available at other pharmacies in the vicinity as well. I don’t travel to any other store and try to treat myself with home remedies.” (Patient 4) | ||
Explore using internet | “I Google to match the ingredients between the prescribed brand and dispensed brand. If there is no difference, I consume the medicine fearlessly.” (Patient 3) |