Community Pharmacies Treatment Practices of Malaria and Residents’ Pattern of Antimalarial Drug Use in Abura Community, Cape Coast Metropolis-Ghana

Background: Community pharmacies are health care facilities that allows the public access to their medications, counselling, and advice about their health. Community pharmacies play critical role in the health delivery systems of several countries especially in developing countries and serve as the first point of call for the treatment and management of many ailments, including malaria. The study therefore examined community pharmacies treatment practices of malaria and residents’ pattern of antimalarial drug use in Abura Community, in the Cape Coast Metropolis of the Central Region of Ghana.

Methods: We conducted a community-based cross-sectional survey involving 301 study participants from the Abura Community (Cape Coast Metropolis). A structured questionnaire was used to collect information from the study participants using accidental sampling technique. Descriptive statistics was performed using SPSS version 23.0 and Microsoft Excel 2010.

Results: The age range of our study was between 15 and 60 years. Females were the majority (52.5%). The self-reported use of unprescribed antimalarial drugs was 41%. The source of the drugs were mainly community pharmacies, licenced chemical shops, self-herbal preparations, and left-over antimalarial drugs.

Conclusion: A high proportion of our study participants reported self-medication of non-prescribed antimalarial drugs. These antimalarials included both orthodox and herbal medications, which were sourced from outlets like community pharmacies, licenced chemical sellers, and home herbal preparations. There is the need to intensify monitoring, public health education on self-medication and the training of staff of community pharmacies to ensure effective treatment and management of malaria at the community level.