Publications

Publications

Proceedings of the 4^th ESCP Conference on Drug Information

Last year's meeting of clinical pharmacists brought together pharmacists from all over Europe. Their discussions included the European registration procedure, the rights of consumers to receive drug information, public education efforts, the role of independent drug bulletins, networking between drug information centres and the possibilities offered by the Internet. Those interested in receiving a copy of the meeting's proceedings should contact the ESCP secretariat at: ESCP, International Secretariat, Theda Mansholtstraat 5b, 2331 JE Leiden, The Netherlands, tel: (+31-71) 572 2430, fax: (+31-71) 572 2431 or e-mail: secretariat@escp.nl

Globalization and Access to Drugs: Implications of the WTO/TRIPs Agreement

Health Economics and Drugs, DAP Series No. 7, by G. Velasquez, P. Boulet, 1998, 62 pp. (Available in English and French, Ref. no. WHO/DAP/98.9)

The impact of globalisation on access to drugs is a crucial issue for those working on essential drugs. This publication summarises the issue for those working in the health field who do not have a legal background. It focuses on the World Trade Organization agreement on intellectual property rights (TRIPs) that may have profound consequences for pharmaceuticals. The document begins by reviewing the international, commercial system from the GATT to the creation of the WTO. It then analyses the TRIPs' section on patents in relation to essential drugs. A selected bibliography is also included.

Copies are available free of charge from the WHO-Action Programme on Essential Drugs (DAP), 1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland, fax: (+41-22) 791 4167 or e-mail: dapmail@who.ch

Prescrire International

This English-language version of the French drug bulletin La revue Prescrire provides a good source of independent drug information. Until now, its subscription price has prevented some people interested in the journal from receiving it. This year, Prescrire International decided to cuts it price in half for interested subscribers. The annual subscription price is now US$60 (FF310). Further rate reductions are available for students. The annual subscription price includes six issues of the journal plus an index of all the issues published during the last five years. Sample copies of Prescrire International are available upon request. Contact: Prescrire International, Association Mieux Prescrire, P.O. Box 459, F-75527 Paris Cedex 11, France, fax: (+33-1) 48 06 52 37 or e-mail: international@prescrire.org

Managing Drug Supply:
The Selection, Procurement, Distribution and Use of Pharmaceuticals (Second edition)

Management Sciences for Health in collaboration with the World Health Organization 832 pages, US$84.95 for developed country orders, US$22.95 for those in developing countries.

This revised and expanded edition of the 1981 original text provides a complete overview and step-by-step approach on how to manage pharmaceutical systems effectively. In its 48 chapters, more than 60 contributors from around the world have provided guidance on four main themes: selection, procurement, distribution and use of drugs. Within its pages, readers will find advice on issues ranging from managing procurement and human resources to investigating drug use and financing strategies. The book highlights practical ways in which governments, NGOs, and donors (among other actors) can ensure high-quality essential drugs are available, affordable and used rationally.

To order, contact: Kumarian Press, 14 Oakwood Ave., West Hartford, CT 06119-2127, US., fax: (+1-860) 233 6072 or e-mail: kpbooks@aol.com

Public Education in Rational Drug Use: A Global Survey

by Daphne Fresle and Cathy Wolfheim, Action Programme on Essential Drugs, World Health Organization (WHO), (WHO/DAP/97.5) 79 pages, free of charge.

Can countries afford not to invest in consumer education efforts? No, argue researchers from DAP citing statistics that in some countries, as much as 80% of illnesses are self-treated using Western pharmaceuticals. At the same time, consumers rely on family and friends as well as health care providers when making decisions about drugs. Acknowledging these facts, DAP undertook an international study on the need for public education efforts, their successes and their constraints. The book was drawn together from a variety of sources as most information about consumer education remains unpublished and hard to find. DAP wanted to make this material available so groups would have the opportunity to base future consumer education campaigns on efforts already proven successful.

In total, groups in 38 developed and developing countries contributed to the study's findings. They reported on projects involving training pharmacists, using the mass media, going into schools, writing publications for consumers and street theatre among other methods.

Some limitations are discussed including the lack of funding for this type of work, the need to advocate for more public education campaigns in order to empower consumers and the need to develop specific training material and networking capability.

To receive a free copy of the report, contact the Action Programme on Essential Drugs, World Health Organization, CH-1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland, fax: (+41-22) 791 4167 or e-mail:DAPMAIL@WHO.CH

Blurring the Boundaries: New Trends in Drug Promotion

by Barbara Mintzes, Health Action International-Europe, 1998, Amsterdam 64 pages, NLG 25.

Health Action International's most recent release Blurring the Boundaries: New Trends in Drug Promotion describes disturbing new trends in the way medicines are marketed. The publication examines the sophisticated and often subtle marketing methods now being used by pharmaceutical companies to sell their products. No longer do consumers and prescribers only have to read drug advertisements carefully, commercial drug information is now being used by patient groups, it can be found on Internet websites, it is sent directly to consumers and it is the main motivation behind a growing number of research studies, among other trends.

"At stake here" says Barbara Mintzes, the author of the publication, "is whether consumer health or commercial interests are to be given priority. The question is not whether consumers should obtain information about treatment options; the question is whether drug promotion-whose aim is to sell a product-can provide the type of information consumers need."

Today there is a deliberate blurring of boundaries between drug promotion and objective information on one hand and the public and private sector on the other one. With shrinking public budgets for health and social services, a new climate of "partnership" with industry has emerged without a great deal of examination of what these partnerships may mean.

Blurring the Boundaries explores the implications this situation has on consumer health, access to appropriate health services and the information on which treatment decisions are based. It also sets out a series of recommendations on how various players involved in drug regulation can work to control drug promotion effectively in order to encourage rational drug use.

Copies of the publication are available from the HAI-Europe office.

Developing Essential Drugs Policies: A Guide for NGOs

HAI-Europe, 28 pp., free of charge

While many NGOs have been advocating the World Health Organization's Essential Drugs Concept for the past 20 years, only a few NGOs have actually integrated its principles into their own activities. This document explains why the adoption of the Essential Drugs Concept can provide an NGO with advantages including using limited resources well, providing clear guidelines for decision-making and contributing to sound financial decisions.

The Guide included here is an updated and revised version of an earlier working paper published in late 1996. The newly published Guide sets out practical reasons why adopting an essential drugs policy is important and then explains a step-by-step approach on how an

NGO might develop such a policy. It also includes a special section describing where NGOs can find help (references and organisations) on essential drugs policies.

Contact the HAI-Europe office to receive a copy of the booklet.

Bitter Pills: Inside the Hazardous World of Legal Drugs

by Stephen Fried, Bantam Books, 1998, 417 pp. (hardcover price US$24.95) ISBN no.: 0-553-10383-0

When author Stephen Fried's wife took the pill her doctor prescribed for a minor infection, he had no idea it would bring them face-to-face with "the other drug problem"-serious adverse drug reactions related to prescription and over-the-counter drugs that cause many deaths each year. (A recent study appearing in the Journal of the American Medical Association estimated that 100,000 US hospital patients die each year from such reactions, making it the fourth leading cause of the death in the country.) Using his years of experience as an investigative reporter, Fried explains for a non-medical audience how the pharmaceutical regulatory system works in the US. His search for answers on why such drugs are allowed on the market brings him to the topics of drug promotion, clinical trials, regulatory actions and the consumer lobby. Although most of these issues will not be new to HAI contacts, Fried's first-hand experience falling through the "pharmaceutical safety net" provides fresh evidence of why consumers must be well informed about the medicines they take and highlights the urgent need for greater transparency on the part of regulatory agencies.

Those with Internet access, can visit the book's website: http://www.bitter-pills.com

10^th WHO Model List of Essential Drugs

The World Health Organization has recently announced a new update of its model list of essential drugs to guide countries and health services in devising their own drug lists. The full text of the list can be found in the publication WHO Drug Information, Vol. 12, No. 1.

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