The Study of Non-prescription Drug Promotion in Taiwan - from Consumer Behavior Perspective
Date Issued
2011
Date
2011
Author(s)
Tsai, I-Fang
Abstract
The increasing trend in consumer awareness and interest in self-care, aging society, emerging chronic disease and healthcare cost have driven the importance of self-medication. To encourage the consumers taking non-prescription correctly so as to meet the Taiwan publics’ need and eliminate the healthcare financial burden. Many OTC players would like to take the opportunity. However, the non-prescription market in Taiwan declined in the past years nevertheless the global market trend is in the acceleration of growth. This has frustrated the OTC players in Taiwan.
This study analyzes the consumer behavior and attitudes in self-medication and external factors affecting the behavior based on the outcomes obtained from the consumer research and stakeholder interview. The purpose is to get the consumer insights in self-medication and the external affecting factors and offer the opportunity and recommendation for the OTC players to introduce new products, work with stakeholders and communicate with the consumers and hope to facilitate the growth of this emerging industry and reduce the healthcare cost.
The outcomes of this study show, the external factors include:
1. No clear healthcare policy in self-medication causes insufficient regulatory framework to allow new product introduction to the market.
2. Neither no support from the medical professional since physicians do not encourage consumers to do self-medication and pharmacists are not well-trusted.
3. The compulsory health insurance system leads the public to visit doctors at low cost and take "free” medicines.
4. Furthermore, the consumers do not have sufficient knowledge in use of medicines and neither no reliable source of information to learn the knowledge.
Further probe from the consumer research, it finds:
1. The general public in Taiwan are with high degree of awareness in self-care. Contrarily, only few people (34%) are willing to buy non-prescription drugs when feeling minor ailment.
2. The main reason suggests doctors and their prescribed medication still earn high degree of trust and confidence by the majority of general public. In addition, the unsatisfied experience in purchasing non-prescription medicines in pharmacy, no proper knowledge to self-select or use the medicines and no reliable source of knowledge to learn are also the main reasons people do not purchase non-prescription drugs.
3. These finds can also reflect the same outcomes obtained from the stakeholders’ interview.
Subjects
Non-prescription medicines
OTC drug
self-medication
self-care
National Health Insurance
consumer behavior
healthcare policy
minor aliments
Type
thesis
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