Automedicación en los adultos mayores que acuden a consulta en el Centro de Salud N° 4 Carlos Elizalde de la Parroquia Yanuncay, Cuenca, 2015

Abstract

Background: The auto-medication is part of nation wide culture, which has been acquired through generations, started with the use of ancestral medicine, until getting to the auto-medication that now days is at the reach of everyone. In Cuenca, the 11.7% of elders auto-medicate themselves. General Objective: Determine the auto-medication on elders that go for medical consultation to the Health Center N° 4 “Carlos Elizalde”, parish of Yanuncay, Cuenca 2015. Methodology: Is a descriptive study of a transversal cut. Effort was made to a grate diversity of 500 elders and a sample of 217 persons. A form of direct interview was made. The information was processed through the statistics programs SPSS 15, 0 and Excel Office; the results are shown in statistics tables of frequency and percentages. Results: A prevalence for auto-medication of 85, 6% was found, the majority of females 62,7%, and elder between 65-70 years old. The main cause for auto-medication reported was the lack of money and time to go to the Health Center 21,6%, the medicine mostly used where analgesics: 45,5% and antiviral drugs 28,7%, acquired in pharmacy´s 53,3% and at stores of the 37,7% Conclusions: The auto-medication is an obvious problem on the elders that do go for medical consultation to the Health Center “Carlos Elizalde” and is related with pathologic problems that accompany aging that demands the use of urgent medication for the immediate relieve of their issues, been acquired in places with easy access like pharmacy´s and stores do to the lack of time and money to go to the different health institutions