The coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic is putting a huge strain on healthcare systems and is a turning point for the beginning of a global health crisis of an unprecedented condition. As such, the provision of quality pharmacy services particularly, dispensing practice with pre-existing challenges in resource-limited settings is a grave concern in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, in this commentary we described the pattern of dispensing practice in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic by evaluating the current condition of drug dispensing practice in drug retail outlets of Jimma Town.

Background With the problems of increasing levels of drug resistance and difficulties to afford and access effective antimalarial drugs in poor and remote areas, herbal medicines could be an important and sustainable source of treatment. Argemone mexicana L. (AM) is a medicinal plant known long ago in several countries for treatment of numerous diseases including malaria. The aim of this study was to conduct a survey on the use of AM in the prevention and treatment of uncomplicated malaria in selected districts of Jimma Zone, Oromia Regional state, Ethiopia. Methods A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted in two selected districts in Jimma Zone, southwest Ethiopia. In total, 552 participants from 17 kebeles (villages/communities) and 18 traditional healers of the districts were interviewed. Data collection was conducted from April 27 to May 18, 2020 using pre-tested structured questionnaires. The data were analyzed using Epi Info 7.0 and the descriptive statistics were used to summarize the results. Results The study indicated that AM is available, known by 39.8% of the respondents and used for prevention and treatment of malaria by 5.7% of the population. All traditional healers interviewed knew the plant, and 44.4% use it for treatment of malaria. In addition, AM is especially used to treat malaria, amoebiasis, diarrhea, cough, and tuberculosis. Conclusion The availability and use of AM to treat malaria was verified in both community and traditional healers. AM, which was found effective as antimalarial plant in high Plasmodium falciparum endemicity in Mali, is also well known and accepted in these areas of Ethiopia for the treatment of malaria. Further research is needed to assess wether AM is also effective against malaria in Ethiopia where P. vivax and P. falciparum coexist.

Background: The use of herbal medicine during pregnancy for different indications now a day becomes common across globally. Its use is increasing, especially in developing countries. It is estimated that 65%-80% of the population use herbal products Objectives: This study aimed to assess the prevalence of herbal medicine use among pregnant women attending Antenatal care at Jimma University medical center, Southwestern Ethiopia. Methods: A cross-sectional study design was employed to conduct the study. Data was collected by data collectors using data abstraction formats, then entered and analyzed using SPSS version 26.0. Frequency and percentage were computed as summary statistics. Results:  A total of 341 pregnant women attending antenatal care were enrolled in the study, of which 331 participated in the study. Out of 331 pregnant women who participated in the study, 3.93% of them practiced self-medication with herbal medicine during their current pregnancy. Conclusions: The most frequently practiced herbal medicine among pregnant women attending antenatal care at JUMC were Ginger and Damakese with the most common clinical indication of vomiting and headache respectively. The source of information for the participant's herbal medicine use were mostly family and friends.

The aim of this study was to assess epilepsy treatment outcome, adherence to Anti-seizure medication (ASM), and its predictors among epileptic patients on follow-up at the chronic care unit of Jimma University Medical Center with a total of 168 epileptic patients enrolled in the study. Data was collected by data collectors using data abstraction formats, then entered and analyzed using SPSS version 26.0. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to identify the association between dependent and independent variable. In this study, 132(78.6%) patients were adherent to their ASMs. Seizure recurrence was identified in 120(71.4%) patients. Rural residence (AOR = 6.42, 95% CI: 1.32, 31.28, P-value = 0.02), chronic ASM therapy for above five years (AOR = 20.86, 95% CI: 2.66, 163.77, P-value = 0.00), and complaint of ASM-associated undesirable effect (AOR = 13.51, 95% CI: 2.72, 67.26, P-value = 0.00) significantly increased the probability of seizure recurrence. On the other hand, the presence of seizure triggering factor(s) (AOR = 0.12, 95% CI: 0.02, 0.64, P-value = 0.01) decreased the probability of seizure recurrence by 88%.

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