Community Pharmacist’s Perspective regarding Self-Medication for Pain Management: Challenges, Risks, and Best Practices.

Abstract

A common ailment linked to self-management is pain, and how much a person uses drugs depends in large part on how much they catastrophize about their physical discomfort. Acute pain is usually responsible for consumption of large amount of NSAID whereas chronic pain is being treated with opioid analgesics, anti-depressants or antiepileptic. Self-medication is defined as taking prescription medications on an intermittent or continuous basis to treat a chronic or recurrent illness or its symptoms, or as using pharmaceuticals to treat diseases or symptoms that oneself diagnoses. All pain medications may or may not be associated with side effects and there might be chances where pain medication may interact with other medications but patients don’t release that due to lack of knowledge. Pharmacist intervention in self-medication for pain management is crucial. Pharmacist intervention in self-medication for pain management presents both challenges and benefits in the realm of healthcare. Pharmacist can mitigate the challenges by providing accurate information, ensuring proper drug selection, and offering guidance on dosage and potential side effects which can reduces the risk of adverse events associated with self-medication, fostering improved patient outcomes. The benefits extend beyond mere drug dispensation, encompassing patient education on pain management strategies, the promotion of responsible self-care.