RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 What do laypeople consider ‘medication’ and are they aware of modulators of a drug's effects? JF European Journal of Hospital Pharmacy JO Eur J Hosp Pharm FD British Medical Journal Publishing Group SP ejhpharm-2016-001086 DO 10.1136/ejhpharm-2016-001086 A1 Alexander F J Send A1 Janina A Bittmann A1 Gerhard Dyckhoff A1 Walter E Haefeli A1 Hanna M Seidling YR 2016 UL http://ejhp.bmj.com/content/early/2017/03/27/ejhpharm-2016-001086.abstract AB Objectives Healthcare providers expect patients to be responsible partners during drug treatment, who know potential risks impeding drug effects and are able to accurately report prescribed and non-prescribed medication. This presumes that they have the same understanding of the term ‘medication’ as healthcare providers. We assessed which products laypeople label as medication and which modulators of drug effects they know.Methods People visiting the otorhinolaryngology outpatient clinic at a university hospital were invited to anonymously complete a questionnaire assessing which products out of 23 listed examples are medications and valuing 12 modulators potentially influencing drug effects.Results Among 94 participants, 86 (91.5%) identified on average 14.4±3.3 (62.6%) of the products and 79 (84.0%) identified 6.7±2.0 (55.5%) of the modulators correctly. Women performed better than men (p<0.01). Regular medication intake, education level and age did not influence the results.Conclusions Laypeople are at risk of misclassifying medications and modulators of drug effects.