This study investigated the prevalence, practice, and factors associated with self-medication with antibiotics (SMA) in the general community in Boyolali, Indonesia. This cross-sectional study used a validated questionnaire with the cluster sampling method applied to select households. Data were analyzed using Chi-Square and multivariate logistic regression analysis. During the study, 961 respondents participated (46.9% male and 53.1% female). SMA prevalence was 16%. Amoxicillin (50.0%) and tetracycline (33%) were frequently used as antibiotics for self-medication. The reasons for SMA were mainly personal experience and not consulting with a doctor to save money. Most respondents reported that antibiotics could kill viruses (84.3%) and reduce fever (73.2%). They do not know that antibiotics must be bought in a pharmacy after being prescribed by a doctor (66.8%) and do not know how to use antibiotics correctly (63.5%). Age, marital status, employment status, knowledge of antibiotic access, knowledge of the impact of inappropriate antibiotic use, and antibiotic misuse were significantly associated with SMA (p
Key words: antibiotics, antibiotic resistance, community, self-medication, public health
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