Medicines and Medication Literacy: Social Practices and Use of Information

Noémia Lopes (), Elsa Pegado, Catarina Egreja, Carla Rodrigues and Ana Isabel Fernandes
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Noémia Lopes: CiiEM—Egas Moniz Interdisciplinary Research Center, Egas Moniz School of Health and Science, Quinta da Granja, Monte de Caparica, 2829-511 Caparica, Portugal
Elsa Pegado: Iscte—Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, CIES-Iscte, 1649-026 Lisbon, Portugal
Catarina Egreja: CiiEM—Egas Moniz Interdisciplinary Research Center, Egas Moniz School of Health and Science, Quinta da Granja, Monte de Caparica, 2829-511 Caparica, Portugal
Carla Rodrigues: Iscte—Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, CIES-Iscte, 1649-026 Lisbon, Portugal
Ana Isabel Fernandes: CiiEM—Egas Moniz Interdisciplinary Research Center, Egas Moniz School of Health and Science, Quinta da Granja, Monte de Caparica, 2829-511 Caparica, Portugal

Social Sciences, 2023, vol. 12, issue 7, 1-15

Abstract: This article discusses results from a sociological study on (i) the sources and use of information on medicines and/or supplements and (ii) the self-assessment of how informed participants were about the last medicine or supplement they purchased. It seeks to demonstrate the plurality of information sources (expert and lay) that individuals call upon—with which they build up their medication literacy—and their perception of the information they have. While these social components of literacy are scarcely visible in available studies, the need to produce knowledge on them is a requisite for a more laypeople-centred approach in public policies seeking to promote medication literacy. A questionnaire was applied in-person (n = 1107) in urban pharmacies in Lisbon and Porto (Portugal). Results show expert information (medical and pharmaceutical) as the dominant reference, followed by lay sources (family/friends/colleagues), while digital sources were less valued than interpersonal ones. This interpersonal dimension was a relevant factor in the building of trust in information. The self-assessment of the information on medication was higher in functional literacy and lower in comprehensive literacy. Studies on medication literacy are particularly relevant in the current context of the expansion and diversification of medicines’ use and of individuals’ growing autonomy in their consumption habits.

Keywords: medication literacy; information sources; informational plurality; pharmaceuticals; dietary supplements; sociological analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A B N P Y80 Z00 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jscscx:v:12:y:2023:i:7:p:392-:d:1186901

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