E-DRUG: Prescribing and dispensing in one hand? (12)
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Dear E-druggers,
The current discussion "prescribing and dispensing in one hand" is
fundamentally missing a point that "international norm" determines
appropriately trained, disciplined and ethical persons must manage human and
animal health care products for the overall benefit of human-kind. The more
crucial question therefore should be why appropriately trained health
professionals e.g. doctors and pharmacists, seemingly, are not sufficiently
alarmed that potent essential medicines are being manufactured, stored and
distributed by persons who have little or no health care training and/ or
are working outside of any credible regulatory oversight. We must be careful
that whilst we focus on whether doctors or pharmacists should have exclusive
rights to prescribe or dispense medicines, the bigger issues of growing
resistance to anti-infective agents, counterfeit drugs, contaminated drugs,
poor quality drugs, in-appropriate uses of medicines, unethical marketing of
medicines, lack of access to essential good quality medicines, etc, rage on
unabated. Surely, if all persons have access to good quality diagnosis,
prescription and dispensing of safe and effective medicines it would be
cause for real celebration. The question, of whether we can get that service
from a doctor or pharmacist (or other appropriately trained health worker)
working within effective monitoring systems, becomes almost irrelevant if we
focus on the major threats and risks facing medical supplies management
globally.
Phillip Passmore
Dr Phillip Passmore
Adjunct Senior Lecturer
Curtin University of Technology
School of Pharmacy
Bentley
Western Australia
Manager
ANTARA Medical Supplies Management Sub-program
Kupang,
NTT Province
Indonesia