IIARD International Institute of Academic Research and Development

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HEALTH AND PHARMACEUTICAL RESEARCH (IJHPR )

E-ISSN 2545-5737
P-ISSN 2695-2165
VOL. 10 NO. 5 2025
DOI: 10.56201/ijhpr.vol.10.no5.2025.pg27.45

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Financing Sustainable Health Coverage and the Regulation of Online Pharmacies in Nigeria

Omoniyi, Joseph OlaOlorun PhD, Okoronkwo, Ngozi, Augustine, Osirim, Monday PhD, FCA

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Abstract

The study is a descriptive survey of internet pharmacy in Nigeria aimed at determining the level of online pharmacy practice in Nigeria. Primary data were obtained from the internet using Google and Yahoo search engines. The sampling method was a census of all two hundred and twenty-four internet pharmacies in Nigeria. The instrument employed was an observation guide which comprises two sections. The first section sought information on the level of online pharmacy practice in Nigeria. The second section sought information on the extent to which online pharmacy is regulated in Nigeria. Both sections employed a dichotomous scale of ‘yes’ and ‘no’ responses. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics including frequencies, percentages and tables. The result of the study shows just 21.9% of the surveyed two hundred and twenty-four online pharmacies have active websites. It also shows that just 1.4% of the six thousand, two hundred and forty-four online pharmacies registered in Nigeria have online presence. From the result, it can be deduced that 44.9% of registered and 7% of unregistered online pharmacies have evidence of active websites. The study concludes that a low level of internet pharmacy is prevalent in the Nigerian space. Furthermore, despite the laws and regulations established, a notably low proportion of the online pharmacies are registered and licensed. It is thus recommended that there is need for regulators to intensify efforts in their quest to improve and promote internet pharmacies in a bid to promote sustainable health coverage in Nigeria.

keywords:

Health coverage, online pharmacies, regulation, financing, pharmaceutical practice

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APPENDICES
Appendix 1: Observation guide employed in the study
(A) Evidence of online pharmacy practice in Nigeria
S/N
KEYWORDS SEARCHED ON THE SEARCH ENGINES
1
Online pharmacy in Nigeria
2
Online pharmacy practice in each state in Nigeria
3
Evidence of presence of active website by each online pharmacy
in Nigeria
(B) Evidence of regulation of online pharmacies
S/N
VARIABLES
1
Online pharmacies observed compared to the PCN list of
registered pharmacies
2

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