Abstract/Summary

Background: Purchasing prescription medicines online is associated with significant risks to patient safety as the Internet abounds with fake medicines. To help reduce these risks, it is important to understand why people purchase prescription medicines online in the first place so that effective interventions might be designed in the future. Aim: This thesis aims to explore the breadth of reasons that drive people to purchase prescription medicines online. Methods: Three data sources were utilised; the news media, consumers who have purchased prescription medicines online, and the existing literature. A qualitative analysis approach was adopted, with the Theory of Planned Behaviour, The Capability, Opportunity, Motivation and Behaviour model, and the Theoretical Domains Framework underpinning the analyses. Results: An overarching conceptual model was developed to encompass the factors that could influence consumer’s decision to purchase prescription medicines online. These reasons were categorised under nine super-ordinate themes; the perceived benefits of purchasing prescription medicines online, the perceived risks, consumer’s emotions, facilitators that increase the possibility of the purchase, barriers that impede the purchase, consumers’ knowledge about the purchase, trusting beliefs that lead consumers to trust the online sellers of medicines, social factors, and environmental factors that could encourage or discourage people from making the purchase. Conclusion: This research provides a holistic understanding of the drivers and challenges in online purchases of prescription medicines. It uncovers a multitude of factors, encompassing perceived benefits, risks, emotions, facilitators, barriers, consumer knowledge, trusting beliefs, social influences, and environmental considerations. These findings hold practical and theoretical significance, underlining the need to acknowledge the complexity of this behavior. It serves as a foundation for future interventions focused on patient safety in the digital age. Further research can be built upon these insights for a safer environment in online prescription medicine purchases.