Background: Self medication is rampant in medical undergraduates. There is a need to evaluate the extent and factors that govern self medication. This study was conducted in 7th semester and 5th semester undergraduates to compare the knowledge, attitude and practice regarding self medication.Methods: It is a questionnaire based study in a total of 294 medical students comprising 147 students each belonging to 7th and 5th semesters to assess determinants and practice methods of self medication in the past one year.Results: 100% of 7th semester and 90% of 5th semester students self medicated. Majority followed modern medicine. Awareness of OTC drugs, essential drugs and generic drugs was not optimum. Students self medicated based on old prescriptions and text books for perceived mild illnesses like common cold, fever and headache. Non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and antihistamines were most commonly used. Not all students checked package insert prior to use.Conclusions: Self medication practice is more pronounced in 7th semester than in 5th semester students. 7th semester students used diverse drugs compared to 5th semester students who used limited groups of drugs.

Background: The aim was to study the prescribing patterns of clinicians working in two different settings i.e. Teaching clinicians (clinicians working in teaching hospital) and Non-teaching clinicians (clinicians involved only in private practice).Methods: A comparative cross sectional study was carried out for a period of 6 months in two settings. The study is confined to teaching clinicians comprising of qualified medical practitioners in ACSR Government Medical College (ACSR GMC) and Non-teaching clinicians of qualified medical practitioners in private health sector (PMPs). 450 prescriptions were collected from clinicians belonging to various departments of ACSR GMC and 450 prescriptions from private practitioners of Nellore city. Data was coded and entered in MS Excel. Data was analyzed on EPI INFO version 3.5.4.Results: In this study it was found that teaching clinicians prescribed 146 (12.85%) drugs by generic name, whereas non-teaching clinicians prescribed 112 (8.75%) drugs by generic name.Conclusions: The findings of the present study indicate that the drugs prescribed by the generic names were remarkably less in both teaching and non teaching clinicians. This indicates a need for improving the generic prescribing patterns in both the settings.

Background: We observed subpar performance in written assessments. We wanted to identify and address the modifiable contributing factors.  Aim: study was undertaken to assess studying practices and preparation for assessments by students in Pharmacology. Methods: study was conducted using questionnaire among 147 fifth and 147 third semester medical students.Questions regarding timing of preparation, revision, sources of drug information, difficult topics, practical exercise preference, e-learning sources, time allotment for questions and diagrams usage were posed. Results: 56% third semesters started studying pharmacology only before monthly tests in contrast to fifth semesters who were trisected in their approach of serious studying.Textbooks were primary source. Higher number of fifth semesters (93%), than third semesters (80%), used internet for learning. Fifth semesters browsed internet for learning more than third semesters. Greater number of fifth semesters viewed online lecture videos and referred to online medical dictionary compared to newer batch.When asked to select practical exercises, fifth semesters favoured prescription writing whereas third semesters preferred clinical problems.Conclusion: Blended approach and peer group learning was more common in seniors. Junior batch students had superficial approach, were task driven towards exam preparation and presentation individualistically.