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Knowledge and Perceptions of Generic Drugs: A Cross Sectional Study

Generic medicines are pharmaceutical products usually intended to be interchangeable with the originator brand product, manufactured without a license from the originator manufacturer and marketed after the expiry of patent or other exclusivity rights. The current potential economic benefits associated with their use have been exponentially rising and thus, generic medicines are a significant approach to reduce the massive expenditure on medicines. Governments are thus emphasizing on and promoting the usage of generic medicines. However, negative perceptions of their quality influence use and raise issues of certainty and trust in medications. The objective of this study is to identify consumers in terms of their perceptions towards branded and generic medicines in the country. A cross - sectional study was conducted with consumers of various age demographics and location factors. Using convenience sampling, survey forms were distributed to them via social media platforms. For a period of 30 days, 236 respondents had participated in the survey. Assessments of the results were conducted on qualitative data to develop an insight into the perception of medicines amongst the masses. The survey confirmed that generic drug awareness was considerably high among younger age groups than older respondents. An overwhelming 78% respondent understood that generic medicines are cheaper than branded medicines. Regardless, 34.8% of respondents who were aware of generic drugs did not realize that they were less expensive than brand-name drugs. The survey conducted showed a high support for generic substitution. Furthermore, it indicates that programs should be implemented in order to boost generic drug prescriptions by medical practitioners. 
Keywords: generic, branded, awareness, healthcare, survey