Dear Dennis,
I agree that the problem of counterfeit drugs is a difficult one, not
in the least because we do not really know its extent.
I hesitate to make it a topic at the ICIUM, because I do not really
see a direct link with rational prescribing. It is, in my opinion, a
real regulatory/quality assurance problem; and the experts in rational
prescribing are usually not the regulators/quality assurance experts.
They have their own fora to discuss the problem (e.g. the recent ICDRA
spent time on couterfeits; there is the WHO counterfeit project; there
will be a separate meeting next year, I understand).
So, as far as I am concerned: let's leave the counterfeit issue out of
the ICIUM, and concentrate on appropriate prescribing and use of
drugs.
Hans Hogerzeil
WHO/DAP
email: hogerzeilh@who.ch