Assessment of prescribing patterns and indicators in the Libyan private clinical settings

The pattern of prescribing and dispensing refers to the process by which healthcare professionals determine appropriate pharmacological interventions. Irrational medicine use can take several forms, the most common being self-medication and unqualified recommendations by pharmacy personnel or informal healthcare providers. This study aims to assess prescribing and dispensing patterns in Libyan private clinical settings. A cross-sectional quantitative survey was carried out between November 2023 and August 2024 in Tripoli City, Libya. A total of 1370 prescriptions were assessed retrospectively, which included 4110 medicines. This study aims to enroll private community pharmacies that receive a large number of prescriptions from the primary health center, public hospital, and the private sector of clinics. The number of medicines prescribed per prescription ranged from one to five or more. 38.7% of total prescriptions contained antibiotics, with 53.2% of one antibiotic, 26.3% two antibiotics, and 20.4% three antibiotics. Most medications were dispensed randomly without a prescription, and it was usual practice to dispense several low-risk medications over the counter. Data indicated low compliance with WHO prescribing indicators. Prescribing from the Essential Medicines List, generic, antibiotic prescribing, and polypharmacy were the major problems. The most common prescriptions were omission errors related to the Medicine. Thus, good prescribing practice is extremely important for minimizing medication errors; physicians should adhere to guidelines.