Ask
Ask what a medicine is for and what you should know before using it.
PAGE 11 · PERSONAL CARE & PREVENTION
MEDICINES &
HEALTH ADVICE
Ask. Understand. Check. Use medicines safely.
Medicines can prevent illness, relieve symptoms and treat disease. But safe medicine use also requires good information, careful communication and responsible decisions.
ASK
→
UNDERSTAND
→
CHECK
→
USE SAFELY
→
REVIEW
01
START HERE
Medicines Are Powerful Tools
Benefit Requires Responsibility
A medicine may be helpful when it is the right medicine for the right person, used in the right way and monitored appropriately.
The goal is not to become your own doctor or pharmacist. The goal is to become a safe, informed participant in your health care.
What Can Go Wrong?
- Using the wrong medicine
- Using too much or too little
- Missing important warnings
- Combining medicines without checking
- Following unreliable health advice
- Using someone else's prescription medicine
- Using antibiotics when they are not appropriate
- Failing to tell a health professional about medicines being used
02
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
Medication Safety Is a Global Health Issue
Medicines are among the most important tools in modern health care. They can prevent disease, control conditions, treat infections and improve quality of life.
At the same time, unsafe medication practices can cause preventable harm. Medication safety is therefore not only an individual responsibility. It is also a responsibility of health professionals, pharmacies, hospitals, manufacturers, regulators and health systems.
WHO's Medication Without Harm initiative places medication safety within a broader patient-safety and health-system framework.
03
PERSONAL HINTS
Be Curious — Not Careless
Understand
Make sure you understand the instructions and important warnings.
Check
Check the label and use trustworthy sources rather than relying on social-media claims.
Communicate
Tell your health professional about medicines, allergies and other relevant information.
Review
Medicines and health circumstances can change. Review your medicines with a qualified professional when needed.
Never Guess
If an instruction is unclear, pause and ask a pharmacist, doctor, nurse or another qualified health professional.
04
EXPLORE
What Exactly Is a Medicine?
Medicines come in many forms and are used for many purposes. Understanding categories helps you ask better questions.
Rx
Prescription Medicines
Medicines that require authorization from an appropriate health professional under the rules of the country where they are prescribed.
OTC
Non-Prescription Medicines
Medicines that can be obtained without a prescription in appropriate circumstances, but still require careful attention to labels, warnings and instructions.
V
Vaccines
Vaccines help the immune system develop protection against specific infections and are an important population-health intervention.
AB
Antimicrobials
Medicines used against microorganisms. Different antimicrobials act against different types of organisms. Antibiotics specifically target bacteria.
05
LEARN
The Five Moments of Medication Safety
WHO's 5 Moments for Medication Safety provides a simple way to encourage patients and caregivers to participate actively in medication safety.
1
Starting a Medicine
What is this medicine for? What should I know before I start?
2
Taking My Medicine
Do I understand how I am supposed to use it?
3
Adding a Medicine
Have I told my health professional about other medicines or health products I use?
4
Reviewing My Medicines
Are all my medicines still appropriate and understood?
5
Stopping a Medicine
Should I stop, change or continue this medicine? Ask the appropriate health professional rather than making an important change based on a guess.
Remember:
A medicine should not be started, stopped or changed simply
because someone online says it is safe or effective for you.
06
HEALTH LITERACY IN ACTION
Read the Label — Don't Guess
Health Canada requires non-prescription medicines sold in Canada to provide important information in a standardized Drug Facts format.
Learning to identify the main parts of a medicine label is a practical health-literacy skill.
Active Ingredient
What medicinal ingredient is present?
Purpose
What does the ingredient do?
Uses
What is the product intended to help with?
Warnings
When might the product be inappropriate or require
professional advice?
Directions
What does the official label say about use?
Other Information
What storage or other important information is provided?
The Golden Rule
If you do not understand a medicine label, ask a pharmacist or another qualified health professional. Do not rely on guesswork.
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GLOBAL HEALTH
Antibiotics: Powerful — But Not for Every Infection
COMMON MISUNDERSTANDING
“Antibiotics treat every infection.”
Not true. Antibiotics are medicines used against bacteria. They do not treat viral infections simply because the illness makes someone feel unwell.
Antibiotic stewardship
Using antibiotics appropriately helps protect their effectiveness and reduce antimicrobial resistance.
Never share prescription medicines
A medicine prescribed for one person may not be appropriate for another person.
Never rely on leftover antibiotics
Decisions about antibiotics should be made by an appropriate health professional.
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DIGITAL HEALTH
Health Advice Online: STOP → CHECK → COMPARE → ACT
01
STOP
Don't immediately believe, share or act on a health claim.
02
CHECK
Who created the information? Is the source identifiable, credible and current?
03
COMPARE
Does the claim agree with reliable public-health or professional sources?
04
ACT
For personal health decisions, discuss important questions with a qualified health professional.
Be especially careful with claims that:
Promise a “miracle cure”
Say doctors are hiding the truth
Depend only on testimonials
Sell a product while claiming to be neutral
Discourage professional advice
Claim that one solution works for everyone
09
THINK
Questions a Health Explorer Should Ask
Q1
What problem is this medicine intended to address?
Q2
Who recommended it, and are they appropriately qualified?
Q3
What trustworthy evidence supports the claim?
Q4
What warnings or precautions should I understand?
Q5
Could another medicine or health product interact with it?
Q6
What should I do if I am uncertain?
10
CONNECT
From SELF → WORLD
SELF
My Decisions
Do I understand the health information I receive?
→
FAMILY & PEERS
Shared Safety
Can I encourage others to check information rather than spreading unsafe advice?
→
COMMUNITY
Health Literacy
Can our community access understandable and trustworthy health information?
→
COUNTRY
Safe Systems
Do policies support quality, availability, affordability and safe use of medicines?
→
WORLD
Global Health
How do medication safety, antimicrobial resistance and equitable access affect populations worldwide?
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SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH
Safe Medicine Use Is Not Only About Individual Choice
Education
People need understandable information to make informed health decisions.
Income
Affordability can influence access to medicines and continuity of care.
Geography
Rural and remote communities may face different access challenges.
Language
Health information should be understandable and culturally appropriate.
Digital Access
Digital health information can expand access while also creating new misinformation and inequity challenges.
Health Systems
Safe prescribing, dispensing, monitoring and communication depend on functioning health systems.
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SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Medicines & the SDGs
SDG 3
Good Health & Well-Being
Safe, effective and equitable access to health care and medicines contributes directly to better health.
SDG 4
Quality Education
Health literacy enables people to understand and evaluate health information.
SDG 10
Reduced Inequalities
Equitable access to understandable information and essential medicines matters for health equity.
SDG 12
Responsible Consumption
Responsible medicine use includes avoiding unnecessary consumption and reducing inappropriate use.
13
GLOBAL LEADERSHIP & EVIDENCE
Think Like a Health Leader
01
Evidence
Ask what evidence supports a health claim.
02
Equity
Ask who can and cannot access safe medicines and reliable health information.
03
Ethics
Respect autonomy, privacy, safety and informed decision-making.
04
Systems
Look beyond individual behaviour to the health system around the person.
14
GHE YOUNG INVESTIGATORS
Community Medicine Information Project
How easy is it for students or community members to find, understand and evaluate trustworthy information about medicines?
SUPERVISED LEARNING PROJECT
01
QUESTION
Define one simple health-literacy question.
02
PLAN
Agree on what information will and will not be collected.
03
SAFEGUARD
Work with a teacher or qualified health professional.
04
PILOT
Test the learning activity with a very small group.
05
COLLECT
Gather anonymous, voluntary responses.
06
ANALYZE
Look for patterns rather than identifying individuals.
07
COMMUNICATE
Present only aggregated findings.
08
ACT
Design a small educational improvement.
Protect People First
- Participation should be voluntary.
- Follow school, teacher and local requirements for consent/assent and permissions.
- Do not collect names, addresses, diagnoses, medication lists or other sensitive personal information.
- Keep responses anonymous whenever possible.
- Report results only in aggregate.
- If the project becomes formal human-subject research, follow the applicable research-ethics/REB process.
15
EXPLORE · THINK · ACT
GHE Exercises
EXERCISE 01
Label Detective
With a teacher or health professional, examine a non-prescription medicine label and identify the main information categories.
- Find the active ingredient.
- Identify the purpose and uses.
- Locate warnings.
- Identify where the official directions appear.
- Write three questions you would ask a pharmacist if something were unclear.
EXERCISE 02
Health Advice Fact Check
Find a health claim encountered online and evaluate the source, evidence, purpose and date.
WHO?
EVIDENCE?
PURPOSE?
CURRENT?
EXERCISE 03
Community Health Literacy Project
Under the supervision of a teacher or qualified health professional, design a small anonymous classroom or community learning project about finding and understanding trustworthy medicine information.
A validated instrument may be used only when appropriate permissions, supervision and ethical requirements have been addressed.
For a simple school activity, an original GHE educational questionnaire can instead measure knowledge and information-evaluation skills without collecting personal health information.
16
MEASURE WHAT MATTERS
Health Literacy Measurement
Researchers and health systems use validated instruments to study different dimensions of health literacy. These instruments should not be confused with informal quizzes or classroom activities.
HLQ
Health Literacy Questionnaire
The Health Literacy Questionnaire (HLQ) is a validated multidimensional instrument developed to measure a broad range of health-literacy needs and experiences.
GHE does not reproduce the questionnaire items here. Researchers should consult the original publication and appropriate permissions or licensing arrangements.
NVS
Newest Vital Sign
The Newest Vital Sign is a brief health-literacy screening instrument that uses a nutrition-label task to assess aspects of reading comprehension and numeracy.
Use in educational or research settings should follow the instrument's validated protocol and applicable permissions.
HLS19
WHO Europe Population Health Literacy Survey
WHO Europe's HLS19/M-POHL work provides a population-level framework for measuring health literacy across countries, including dimensions related to digital health literacy.
Important distinction
A classroom quiz created by GHE is an educational exercise. It is not automatically a validated health-literacy instrument.
17
REFLECT
Your Health Information Habits
ACT
Become a Safer Health Information User
Choose one action this week:
THINK GLOBAL · ACT LOCAL · DO IT NOW!
18
CHECK YOUR LEARNING
Health Literacy & Medicines Quiz
1. What is one of the most important reasons to understand a medicine before using it?
2. Which organization developed the “5 Moments for Medication Safety” tool?
3. Which is an important part of a non-prescription medicine label in Canada?
4. Antibiotics are primarily used against:
5. What is antimicrobial resistance?
6. Which source is generally the strongest starting point for checking a public-health claim?
7. What should you do if medicine instructions are unclear?
8. Which is an example of health misinformation?
9. Which sequence is a useful GHE approach to online health advice?
10. What is the main purpose of a validated health-literacy questionnaire?
11. Why should a student project about health literacy avoid collecting classmates' private medical information?
12. Which factor can affect equitable access to medicines?
13. Which statement best describes medication safety?
14. Which is the best response to a health claim that contradicts reliable evidence?
15. What is the central goal of becoming a health-literate medicine user?
View Answer Key
1. B
2. A
3. B
4. A
5. B
6. C
7. B
8. B
9. B
10. B
11. A
12. D
13. C
14. B
15. C
19
GO DEEPER
Trusted Medicine & Health Advice Resources
World Health Organization
Medication safety, rational medicine use, essential medicines and patient engagement.
Health Canada
Medicine labels, regulated health products and medication-safety information.
NextGenU
Free health-science learning resources for learners around the world.
Academic & Professional Sources
Use peer-reviewed research and trusted academic institutions to investigate health claims.
20
SOURCE FOUNDATION
Evidence Behind This Page
World Health Organization
Medication Without Harm
World Health Organization
5 Moments for Medication Safety
World Health Organization
Promoting Rational Use of Medicines
World Health Organization
WHO Model List of Essential Medicines
Health Canada
Non-Prescription Drug Labels / Canadian Drug Facts Table
WHO / Global Antimicrobial Resistance Programme
Antibiotic and antimicrobial-resistance education