The quality of prescribing in general practice in Kerman, Iran

Purpose - The aim of the present study was to assess the prescribing pattern of general practitioners (GPs) in Kerman province of Iran. Design/methodology/approach - A total of 45,384 prescriptions issued in one year (2002) by GPs in ten cities of Kerman province were investigated for the number of drugs/prescription, drug name, drug category and route of administration. The mean number of drugs/prescription was 3.43. Findings - Overall most of the drugs (97.2 per cent) were prescribed by generic name. The most frequently prescribed drugs were antibiotics (33.95 per cent), sedative/hypnotics (19.56 per cent), non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) (19.2 per cent) and corticosteroids (11.2 per cent). About 42.4 per cent of the patients received an injectable drug. Originality/value - The results of this study showed inappropriate prescription of antibiotics, NSAIDs, corticosteroids and injectable drugs. So intervention methods should be chosen to change physicians' prescribing behavior, through education of rational drug prescription, to improve the quality of prescribing practice of GPs.