Patients Choose Generics

A survey conducted by Pharmacy Insight has found that 75% of pharmacists said patients often or always selected the generic product for a range of pharmaceutical categories. The category included antibiotics, pain management OTC and diabetes medication. For categories such as hormone replacement therapy, 56% of pharmacist surveyed said patients selected the generic and for anticoagulants, only 39% reported this, which Pharmacy Insight co-partner ACA Research said could be due to patients wanting to stick with what works but could also be the result of lower number of generics option available.

Of the 628 pharmacists surveyed, 55% said there were times when they recommended a patient stick with the brand prescribed, even when generic options existed, the report found.

Just over half (52%) of these said this was due to patient resistance towards generics and 27% said they recommended this to avoid patient confusion.

Twenty three per cent said it was due to doubts about the generic product quality and 19% said their decision was influenced by patient support from the branded product manufacturer, the report found.

Generic Medicines Industry Association acting CEO Belinda Wood said there was still consumer misunderstanding when it came to generics, and there was a “clear role” for the TGA to communicate its evaluation of generic medicines to reassure consumers of the quality, safety, efficacy and health outcomes of generic medicines.

Knowing how generic medicines are made, work and their role in providing a cost effect health treatment in Australia is an important step in advising patients on this important group of medications.

You can learn and/or brush up on this knowledge with the education modules below.

Source: pharmacydaily.com.au, Friday 17 October 2014