Impact of direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical advertisement on the buying behavior of over-the-counter drugs in Cabanatuan city, Nueva Ecija

Direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical advertisements have slowly made its way as the main medium of endorsements for over-the-counter drugs in the Philippines. Over the years, the consumer's level of understanding regarding over-the-counter drugs and self-medication possesses a gap that has caused misuse and abuse of over-the-counter drugs. This study was designed to determine the impact of direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical advertisement on the buying behavior of consumers on over-the-counter drugs within Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija. An analytical-observational quantitative study will be conducted using a self-made questionnaire on a sample of 384 individuals selected using a non-probability purposive sampling design. Statistical treatments are addressed using descriptive statistics with frequency and percentage distributions to ascertain the respondents' sociodemographic characteristics. The second objective addressed uses weighted mean and standard deviation to ascertain the consumer's level of understanding regarding over-the-counter drugs. The correlation will be employed using Pearson's Correlation. The chi-square test will be utilized to determine any associations between the underlying causes of OTC medication misuse and abuse and the utilization of DTCA in OTC drug advertising