E-drug: Expert seminar on drug donations: the time to act is now!
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On June 11 and 12 in Leiden, the Netherlands, an expert seminar on
appropriate drug donations was held. The objective of the seminar was to
bring together (NGO-) experts on the issue of drug donations and discuss
effective strategies on awareness-raising and 'good donations practice' (the
programme of the seminar can be found at
http://www.wemos.nl/donations/seminarprogramme.htm).
At the seminar an educational video 'Making drug donations better with care'
(duration 15 minutes) and a new web-site (http://www.drugdonations.org - under
construction) were launched. The work at the seminar, under responsibility
of the NGO-consortium of DIF�M, PIMED, Wemos, and new member Prosalus, will
result in a few months time in practical and instructive booklets on the two
seminar-themes.
At the seminar on June 11 a press conference was held. A press release was
sent out later that day, the text of the press release is copied below.
Press release June 11, 1999:
Appropriate drug donations � the time to act is now!
There is an urgent need to improve the quality of drug donations world-wide,
participants heard at a European Expert Seminar on Appropriate Drug
Donations in Leiden, the Netherlands, Friday, June 11. Representatives from
60 organisations in 16 countries met to learn from past experience and plan
effective strategies for the future.
Donations of drugs to the refugees of Kosovo in Albania and in the Former
Yugolav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) are 'inappropriate and of low
quality', according to Gilles-Bernard Forte, an advisor for Central and
Eastern Europe for the World Health Organisation�s (WHO) Programme for
Pharmaceuticals.
Mr Forte noted that despite the efforts made by ministries of health of
recipient countries, WHO and other international agencies in the field to
promote good donation practices, reports indicate that large quantities of
donated medicines are unusable and wasted. About 30% of drugs are donated
directly by countries, and not co-ordinated through programmes by
international agencies. In Albania, for example, only an estimated 20% of the
donated medicines, worth $9 million, have been channelled through
appropriate co-ordination structures.
'Tons of medicines to treat cholera and acute diarrhoea are stockpiled', he
said. 'Meanwhile, medicines for non-communicable and chronic diseases are in
great need.'
A survey by WHO May 10 to 19 in FYROM highlighted the poor compliance of
relief agencies with WHO�s interagency Guidelines for Drug Donations. In one
donation, more than 40% of the medicines were considered non-essential or
did not comply with national standards. About 30% were expired and had less
than one year remaining shelf life.
This same situation was repeated in Central America in the wake of Hurricane
Mitch, October 1998, one of the worst natural disasters in history.
According to Maria Teresa Gago from the US-based Pan-American Health
Organisation, there was a massive response from the international
community. In Honduras alone, more than 1.5 million people were affected.
The health infrastructure was devastated � 23 of the 30 hospitals had their
water distribution system either partially or completely destroyed; 123
health clinics suffered serious damage and 68 were destroyed.
'In Honduras, we have found that despite the good intentions of many
charitable organisations, inappropriate donations were received. For
example, pharmaceuticals were not in a familiar language; many donations had
expired or were about to expire and some did not correspond to the country�s
disease patterns', she said.
As a result, drugs and medical equipment are being stored in a temporary
warehouse. It will take many man-hours to sort through the donations, Ms
Gago noted, valuable time that could have been spent more effectively
elsewhere: 'It was a disaster situation itself'.
The recent events in the Balkans and Central America highlight the need for
implementation of the WHO inter-agency guidelines, according to conference
organisers. Developed three years ago and revised in March 1999, they have
not yet been adopted by the United States nor by the EU member states and
have been the subject of much controversy within the aid community and
pharmaceutical industry.
'Drug donations in emergency situations are essential, but they can cause as
much harm as they can do good', according to Mark Raijmakers of WEMOS, a
Dutch based NGO concerned with international health issues. 'With the Kosovo
crisis, we have the opportunity to bring the problems to light and
underscore the need for appropriate donations. We simply cannot risk
repeating the mistakes that were made in the past'.
Another issue is how to dispose of inappropriate drugs in recipient
countries. As one participant pointed out, expired pharmaceuticals turn into
chemical waste, with all of the associated costs and potential health
threats to the area.
WEMOS, DIFAM and PIMED used the seminar to launch a Europe-wide awareness
campaign, designed to inform national governments and donors of the urgent
need to implement the WHO Guidelines.
For more information, please contact: Mark Raijmakers at Wemos,
+31-20-46.88.388, fax +31-20-46.86.008, pharmaceuticals@wemos.nl.
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