Fig 1.
Age distribution and corresponding oral solid medication consumption of the study participants (older patients).
For each 5‑year age category (60–64, 65–69, …, ≥ 90), blue bars indicate the percentage of participants in that category and red bars indicate the percentage of total OSM consumed by that category (n = 408). Age and current OSM were obtained by interview and observation during May to July 2024 at five selected hospitals, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Values are proportions; no error bars are shown. Abbreviation: OSM, oral solid medication.
Table 1.
Distributions of socio-demographic variables and corresponding oral solid medication consumption of the study participants (older patients) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Table 2.
Distributions of personal and therapy-related variables and corresponding oral solid medication consumption of older patients in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Table 3.
Distributions of aging, clinical-related variables, and corresponding oral solid medication consumptions of older patients in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Table 4.
Distributions of behavioral factors and corresponding oral solid medication consumptions of older patients in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Fig 2.
Size distributions of oral solid medications of the study participants (older patients).
Proportions represent the share of all recorded OSM classified by maximum dimension (mm) into six bins (≤6, 6.01–9, 9.01–12, 12.01–15, 15.01–18, > 18; n = 1256). Measurements were obtained from the summary of product characteristics (SmPC) and by measuring the size by using a measuring tool called a tablet and diameter measuring instrument“ or a “tablet caliper with each unique product counted once per participant. Data were collected in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from May to July 2024 at five selected hospitals. Abbreviation: OSM, oral solid medication.
Table 5.
Characteristics of oral solid medications used by older patients in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Fig 3.
Acceptance of oral solid medications among older participants.
Pie slices show the proportion of medications classified as accepted versus not accepted based on patient ratings of each medication (n = 1,256 medications). Acceptance was assessed using a 5‑point Likert scale for each medication; ratings of 3 (neutral) or higher were classified as accepted, and ratings below 3 as not accepted. Data were collected in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, using questionnaire/structured interview during from May to July 2024 in five selected hospitals. Abbreviation: OSM, oral solid medication.
Table 6.
Factors associated with oral solid medication acceptance among older patients in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 2025.