E-DRUG: Film on street sales of medicines in Burkina Faso
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Dear E-druggers,
Last year I purchased a film called "Tiim" on the sale of medicines in
markets in Burkina Faso. The film was made by Pharmaciens Sans
Frontieres (Pharmacists without borders) and CINOMADE. It follows one
street vendor as he goes to markets, homes and farms selling medicines.
Treatments are recommended and bought according to the pictures on the
medicine packets (eg "old lady playing football" for tiredness). Several
customers, ex-customers and another ex-street vendor are interviewed.
The benefits of generic drugs purchased in pharmacies are also discussed.
Yesterday I showed the film to my undergraduate pharmacy students for
the first time. Like me, they learnt a lot from the film, and also found
it really interesting and entertaining. The focus on individual street
sellers and customers personalised the problems and made them more
immediate for students. Afterwards they asked me to e-mail and find out
what had happened to the people in the film.
I would really recommend the film as a way of illustrating the problems
with street sale of medicines in developing countries, why people buy
and sell medicines in this way, and possible solutions. It would be
great as a teaching resource for pharmacy and medical students, or
anyone else learning about healthcare in developing countries.
If you would like a copy of the film please contact : Ghislaine
Soulier, Pharmaciens Sans Frontières Comité International,
g.soulier@psf-ci.org
Best wishes,
Pauline
--
Pauline Norris, PhD
Senior Lecturer
Leader, Pharmacy Practice Research
School of Pharmacy
University of Otago
Box 913
Dunedin
New Zealand
Ph: 64 3 479 7359
Mobile: 64 25 80 95 95
Fax: 64 3 479 7034
E-mail: pauline.norris@stonebow.otago.ac.nz
E-DRUG: Film on street sales of medicines in Burkina Faso (2)
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Dear E-druggers,
I would like to underline what Pauline was saying. EPN used that film in
different activities in a workshop on Rational Use of Medicines during WHA
2005 too. "Tiim" shows the daily reality in lots of the streets, market
places etc. And it shows the importance to intensive our fight for rational
use of medicines.
Where to start? How to add that issue to all curricula? I know that Natalia
in Moldova has some experiences about how to invite school kits to talk
about RUM and Generic medicines. Maybe others have experiences too so that
we could start to collect case stories and case studies? EPN is just now
working on a new edition of the WCC-Contact-magazine to RUM.
No doubt, we all have to lobby the governments to keep eyes on such
dangerous practices.
Maybe we should strategize action on RUM with focus on WHA 2007?
Would PSF or somebody else be able to produce a "Tiim" version in English
language?
regards
Albert Petersen
Pharmaceutical Aid Department
DIFAEM
P.O.Box 1307
72003 Tübingen
Fon: +49/7071/206-531
Fax: +49/7071/27-125
e-Mail: petersen.amh@difaem.de
www.difaem.de
Country Focal Point and Chair of
Ecumenical Pharmaceutical Network EPN
E-DRUG: Film on management of Aceh tsunami donations
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As a follow-up to the notice about the street sale of drugs in Burkino Faso, I would like to bring attention to another film from PSF-CI; le second Tsunami which documents the 600 tons of unusable medication sent to Banda Aceh following the Tsunami. The name is a reference
to the feeling of health-care professionals who had to deal with a second
Tsunami of worthless material they were then in need of destroying which as
I understand it is still ongoing. It is a sobering commentary with
references to previous outpourings of well intentioned garbage following
seemingly every natural disaster and war. It is so significant we have
elected to screen it during our next conference ( Maine Benzodiazepine Study
Group www.mainebenzo.org) as the first film we have ever shown at a
conference.
I strongly recommend the film.
[For more information contact Ghislaine Soulier, Pharmaciens Sans Frontières Comité International, g.soulier@psf-ci.org... BS]
Stevan Gressitt, M.D.
Maine Benzodiazepine Study
Group www.mainebenzo.org
USA
207-441-0291
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