Investigating the drivers for antibiotic use and misuse amongst medical undergraduates–perspectives from a Sri Lankan medical school

Medical undergraduates are a unique group who gain the theoretical knowledge on prescribing antibiotics but are not authorized to prescribe till full licensure. This unique situation may result in self-medication and unauthorized prescription of antibiotics. This cross-sectional study was conducted among medical students of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka in 2021 to identify patterns and drivers for antibiotic use and misuse among medical undergraduates. A validated, self-administered Google forms-based online questionnaire was used to gather information on antibiotic use, misuse, and associated factors: demographics, knowledge and perceptions. Two scores; a practice score and a knowledge score were calculated to compare with the associated factors.