Public Hawking of Medicines: The Blind Spot in Medicines Regulation

Abstract

Communities have perpetually pursued access to medicines as preventive or treatment tools to alleviate suffering. Individuals within the society have the propensity to devise convenient and affordable means to acquire medicines be they traditional or allopathic. Anecdotal observations have revealed street hawking of antibiotics in the Western towns of Kenya such as Kericho, Kisumu, Kakamega and the adjacent lower tier townships since the 1970s. This may have been motivated by the desire to access antimicrobials for self-medication of the then stigmatized urinary tract infections such as gonorrhea, syphilis and pelvic inflammatory disease. The practice of hawking antimicrobials aligns with traditional practices of self medication and lay consultation networks targeted at saving resources while maintaining patient confidentiality. Furthermore, formal health facilities were scarce and riddled with a reputation for patient harassment. Indeed, the hostile and judgmental healthcare environment could be a major driver of self medication with antimicrobials.