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New research has found that almost one in five people take their prescription medicines incorrectly.
The study, conducted by Lloydspharmacy, reveals that over eight million adults have either misread medicine labels or misunderstood the instructions, and 1.8 million say that they have suffered an adverse reaction as a result.
Andy Murdock, pharmacy director for Llloydspharmacy, said: “We know that many patients choose not to complete their course of medication, but this study reveals a different type of problem; patients who, for whatever reason, take their medicines incorrectly.”
More than 2.7 million admit that they have confused dosage and frequency instructions for two medicines, and over two million say that they have continued with a repeat prescription even though they had forgotten why it was prescribed.
One respondent to the Lloydspharmacy Medicines Use Review admitted spraying his cat with his inhaler because he believed the animal was the cause of his asthma.
