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  • Title: Towards a healthy use of pharmaceuticals.
    Author: Laporte JR.
    Journal: Dev Dialogue; 1985; (2):48-55. PubMed ID: 12341047.
    Abstract:
    This paper examines 4 factors which determine the kind and the quantity of medicines used in a community: drug promotion, the disease pattern, the pharmaceutical supply, and the structure and priorities of the health system. The use of drugs is a method whereby manufacturers exert pressure to ensure a constant expansion of the market, rather than trying to fulfill a real need. Drug promotion is an obvious determinant of irrational and unhealthy use of drugs. The pharmaceutical industry spends between 15 and 25% of its total budget on promotional activities, and this proportion is even higher in 3rd World countries. The general assumption that the prescription of a medicine has some relationship with the disease the patient is suffering from is unsupported by the evidence. It has never been proven that an infinite number of drugs provides any greater benefits for public heaath than a more limited number of products. The existence of a large number of drugs may result in confusion at all levels of the therapeutic chain, and represent a waste of manpower and money. The economic and human resources allocated to health systems are the main determinants of drug consumption. Drug utilization, as defined by the WHO, involves 3 elements: the drug supply; the use of the drug in the health system; and the use of the drug beyond the health system.
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