Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Article Title

Prescription Medication Misuse Among American Indians in the Midwestern US

Authors

Charley S. Lewis, University of Kansas Medical CenterFollow
Jordyn Gunville, University of Kansas Medical CenterFollow
Ryan Goeckner, University of Kansas Medical CenterFollow
Brian Chase, University of Kansas Medical CenterFollow
Lauren Clark, University of Kansas Medical CenterFollow
Jianghua He, University of Kansas Medical CenterFollow
Won S. Choi, University of Kansas Medical CenterFollow
Christine M. Daley, University of Kansas Medical CenterFollow

Keywords

Indians, North American; Substance-Related Disorders; Community-Based Participatory Research; Surveys and Questionnaires

Disciplines

Other Public Health | Substance Abuse and Addiction

Abstract

Background: Prescription medications, particularly opioids, are often abused rather than used as intended by the prescribing physician. This is well-documented, though little data are available on American Indians. Misuse of other prescription medications is far less documented, but does occur and can have wide-spread effects.

Methods: We used a cross-sectional survey of American Indians in the Midwestern US (N=361) to begin to understand misuse of prescription medications, not necessarily to get high, but for any reason. Participants were recruited for this touchscreen computer-based survey at powwows, health fairs, and other community events through a convenience sample. We asked questions about sharing medication, as well as whether or not an individual finished a prescribed run of antibiotics. We asked about sharing prescription allergy medicine, antacids, antibiotics, pain relievers, water pills (diuretics), medicines for asthma, blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, epilepsy, or heart disease, or other. We used stepwise logistic regression to determine the demographic variables most predictive of taking someone else’s medication.

Results: Over one-third of participants in this survey (33.8%) confessed to having taken medication prescribed for someone else. The medications individuals most commonly took from someone else were pain relievers (23.6%) and antibiotics (22.0%). The medications most commonly given to someone else were similar, but changed in order, with antibiotics at 21.4% and pain relievers at 15.9%. The factors most predictive of sharing prescription medications were having grown up on a reservation (p=0.012), reporting poor health status (p=0.013), and not having seen a provider in the past year (p=0.074).

Conclusions: This is an area of research that warrants further study, particularly antibiotic misuse. The literature on pain reliever misuse expands daily, but there are dramatic effects to the larger population with the misuse of antibiotics. Interventions are necessary for American Indian communities and others to target all prescription medication misuse.

Recommended Citation

Lewis, Charley S.; Gunville, Jordyn; Goeckner, Ryan; Chase, Brian; Clark, Lauren; He, Jianghua; Choi, Won S.; and Daley, Christine M. (2018) "Prescription Medication Misuse Among American Indians in the Midwestern US," Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice: Vol. 12: Iss. 1, Article 10.
Available at: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/jhdrp/vol12/iss1/10