ArticlePloS one2022
Assessment of knowledge, attitude, and practice of disposing and storing unused and expired medicines among the communities of Kathmandu, Nepal.
Article in PloS one, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers.
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Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed.
- Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products (PPCPs) disposal practices in Tokha, Nepal: a health belief model study.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Public knowledge and practices toward safe disposal of unused and expired medications in Palestine: a cross-sectional study.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Addressing the disposal of unused and expired medications in Saudi households: Time to bridge the regulatory gaps.PloS one · 2026Article
- Knowledge, Attitudes And Disposal Practices For Unused Medicines Amongst Adult Residents Of Bloemfontein, South Africa.Drug, healthcare and patient safety · 2026Article
- Global patterns and determinants of household medicine storage and disposal: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of pharmaceutical policy and practice · 2026Review
- Medication waste and disposal behaviors among Iranian households: A Cross-sectional study.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Disposal of unused and expired medications: A study of knowledge, attitudes, and practices among community pharmacy visitors.SAGE open medicine · 2025Review
- Disposal practice and determinants of unused medicines among the general public in Gondar City, Northwest Ethiopia.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- Article
- Knowledge and practices on home medication storage and disposal in Syria: a population-based, cross-sectional study.BMC public health · 2024Article
- Insights Into Medicine Expiry Awareness Among the Population of Rural South India: A Mixed-Methods Approach.Cureus · 2024Article
- The management of unused and expired medications in Thai households: Influencing factors and prevailing practices.PloS one · 2024Article
- Drug take-back program: assessment of knowledge, practices, and barriers to safe disposal of unused medication among healthcare students in a Nigerian university.BMC medical education · 2023Article
- Assessment of general population knowledge, attitude, and practice on safe unused and expired drugs disposal: a cross-sectional study.F1000Research · 2023Observational
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundUnused medicines can be stored by many people at their places of residence and houses for later use. This study evaluated knowledge, and attitudes regarding unused and expired medicines and explored medicine storage and disposal practices among selected households in the Kathmandu valley, Nepal.
methodA cross-sectional study with a two-stage cluster survey design was done using a semi-structured questionnaire from April to October 2021. The sample size (total number of households) after adjusting for design effect and non-response rate was 210 and the study population was the household heads. Simple random sampling was done to select clusters during the first stage and systematic random sampling to select households during the second stage. Descriptive statistics and t-test/one-way ANOVA were used to compare the respondents' average knowledge scores. Practice variables were presented using frequency distribution.
resultsAround half the respondents were from the Kathmandu district, nearly 20% were from Bhaktapur and 30% were from Lalitpur. Nearly two-thirds were male and about 25% had a bachelor's degree. Nearly 90% of respondents agreed that storage of excess medicines at home may promote self-medication. Similarly, 97.6% of respondents agreed there is a lack of adequate information on the safe disposal of unused medicines. The majority [125 (59.5%)] of participants always checked the expiry date of medicines. The safe methods of medicine disposal were not known by 137 (65.2%) participants. Throwing in a dustbin was the preferred method of expired medicine disposal.
conclusionThe level of knowledge and practice of disposing of unused and expired medicines requires improvement. Educational interventions may help improve awareness further. Creating a chart summarizing disposal procedures of common medicines is important. Similar studies in other regions are required.
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