The Effects of Health Literacy and Sociodemographic Characteristics on the Rational Use of Medication in Health Students: A Cross-sectional Study

Background: This study aimed to investigate the rational medication use of health students, their health literacy (HL), the associations of these factors with sociodemographic factors, and the contribution of HL to the rational use of medication (RUM). Methods: Data for this cross-sectional study were collected from 1256 health students between February and June 2020 in Turkey, using a Sociodemographic Information Form, the Rational Medication Use Scale, and the Turkish version of the European HL Scale. Results: The sociodemographic characteristics of the participants were not associated with their RUM. HL level was higher in the participants who were using medication regularly, those over the age of 20, and those with good income levels (P<0.05). The participants had a good level of HL (112.11±12.22), and they used medications moderately (38.40±3.83). The total score of HL and the score of understanding dimension of HL were associated with the RUM (P<0.05). Conclusion: These findings provide a way to identify fallacies regarding rational medication use. There should also be continuous development of all dimensions of HL to maintain rational medication use behaviors. The findings obtained in this study provide basic data for educators and educational administrators to better support students with appropriate training programs to increase HL and rational medication use. A well-planned structured education program to provide information should be introduced urgently to raise the awareness of health students about the harmful consequences of irrational medication use.