Understanding antibiotic use in the community setting in Thailand: Does communication matter?
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Summary
Explores communication, power and misconceptions surrounding community antibiotic dispensing and use in Kanchanaburi.
The summary describes the published study and the sources listed below.
Scientific notes: 2026-11-12 · Research connections: 12 November 2026Key findings
Key findings
Participants described rushed dispensing, technical-language barriers, unequal knowledge and negotiating power, and inconsistent adherence linked to misconceptions or side-effect concerns. Informal sales could lack instructions. These are qualitative findings, not measured resistance reductions.
Study design & setting
Study design and methods
Population, setting or evidence base
Kanchanaburi HDSS, urban/semi-urban Thailand; 88 participants: 70 community members and 18 suppliers. Collection occurred in 2016–2017 and 2018.
Methods
ABACUS qualitative substudy: 34 initial interviews, eight supplier follow-up interviews and eight focus groups. Thai-language transcripts underwent line-by-line coding and thematic analysis.
Limits to interpretation
Limitations
Illegal dispensers could not be directly studied. Local accounts are not population prevalence estimates; self-report may differ from practice. Historical collection limits current applicability. Proposed QR-code communication was not evaluated.
Research relevance
Research relevance
Informs accessible, two-way antibiotic communication and future intervention design; it is related surveillance research, without a tested CHEERS or climate intervention.
People, places & projects
Research connections
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Projects & methods connections
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Published sources & review scope
Sources
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