Aim: To report on Polish hospital health care workers' and lay persons' knowledge about counterfeit medicine products.
Materials And Methods: Cross-sectional design was used. Two types of questionnaire survey about counterfeit medicine, separate for health care professionals and lay persons were completed by 201 physicians and nurses, and 450 adult Polish residents between October 2008 and January 2009.
Results: Physicians and nurses working in hospitals are more aware of counterfeit medicine than lay persons and more often notice the presence of drugs from unknown sources. Nearly 90% of physicians, 80% of nurses, and more than 40% of representatives of the lay persons had heard about the possibility of importing illegal medicine from Ukraine or China. The majority of medical workers does not know the procedure for reporting suspicious medicine and do not warn their patients against purchasing medicine from unknown sources.
Conclusions: Increase education of nurses and physicians about counterfeit medicine particularly including the procedure of reporting suspicious medicine from unknown sources. In practice, reinforce a role of nurses and physicians in warning their patients against purchasing medicine from unknown sources and educate them about possible health hazards and life risks.
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