Lay perception and management of drug-related risks (PeGePRiM)

ANSM Contract (2014-2016) | Cermes3
Coordinator: Sylvie Fainzang, Cermes3

Users’ awareness of the risks associated with drugs leads them to modify the terms of use of their drugs (whether they are prescribed by a doctor, are recommended by a pharmacist, or are chosen as self-medication).The research attempts to determine how users construct, perceive, and manage the risks associated with the drugs, and what strategies they set up (information strategies, recourse strategies, using strategies).

The goals of the study are to identify and understand:

• the (cultural, social, and symbolic) rationales underpinning drug-risk management;
• the strategies developed to play down what users perceive as a risk;
• the use practices (modifying dosages, or refusal, selection, or substitution of drugs);
• to what extent individuals are prepared to accept certain risks in order to avoid others, etc.

This project comprises several parts: an investigation among users on their individual practices with regard to drug risks; an investigation among pharmacists on complaints expressed by their customers; an investigation among physicians on the possible refusal of certain drugs by their patients; and an investigation of discussion forums where users share information on adverse effects they have experienced and advice on how to manage or avoid them.

Members of the project: Ashley Ouvrier (postdoctoral fellow Cermes3)