Abstract
Objective: This study aimed to examine the relationship between rational drug use literacy among grocery store operators and their qualification under the Amanah Grocery Store assessment criteria in Narathiwat Province, Thailand.
Methods: A cross-sectional analytical study was conducted among 106 grocery store operators in Narathiwat Province. The research instrument consisted of a structured questionnaire covering general demographic information and drug use literacy scores. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, including frequency distribution, mean, and standard deviation. Differences in drug use literacy scores between Amanah-certified grocery store operators and general grocery store operators were compared using the student’s t-test. The relationships between relevant factors and Amanah store status were analyzed using either the Chi-square test or the student’s t-test, depending on the data type. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Results: Among the participants, 75 (70.75%) were operators of Amanah-certified grocery stores. The majority were female (87.10%), aged between 31 and 40 years (41.50%), and held a bachelor's degree (41.50%). The drug use literacy scores of Amanah-certified grocery store operators were significantly higher than those of general grocery store operators (p-value ≤ 0.001). Furthermore, educational level and occupation were significantly associated with Amanah store status (p-value ≤ 0.001). Drug use literacy in four key areas medication labeling, critical awareness of advertising, drug selection and usage, and understanding of medical terminology was also significantly associated with Amanah store status (p-value ≤ 0.001).
Conclusion and Recommendations: Promoting rational drug use literacy among grocery store operators can enhance the development of Amanah-certified grocery stores. Therefore, training and capacity-building programs should be implemented to equip store operators with knowledge and understanding of standardized health products, enabling them to select safe and appropriate health products for their communities.