OBJECTIVES: Irrational medication use is among major health problems that cause significant economic implications. Little attention has been paid to patient’s belief and perception towards medications use. The aim of the study was to investigate drug use behaviour among communities of Perak and Kelantan states in Malaysia.  METHODS: Qualitative focus groups discussion was used in this study. Semi-structured interview guide was developed by the researcher after extensive literature review and reviewed by expert in that field. Purposive sampling was used to recruit seven participants from Perak and Kelantan state. The discussion was audio-taped and transcribed verbatim by two independent researchers. Transcript was then analyzed with deductive content analysis for qualitative data analysis. RESULTS: Five majors themes identified from thematic content analysis: (1) common health problem, (2) possible solution for common health problems, (3) source of medication, (4) factors associated with medication use behaviours, and (5) strategies to reduce medication use problems. The main underlying medication use problem was poor adherence. Factors associated with medication use behaviours were patient-related factors, therapy related factors and healthcare system factors.  The Health Belief Model has been used to aid our understanding of the findings in this study. CONCLUSIONS: Misconceptions towards medication use still persist among the local community. Effective strategies need to be formulated in order to increase patient adherence towards medication since poor adherence cause decreased patient clinical outcome and cause the increased in healthcare cost.