BACKGROUND Rational medicine use is essential to optimize quality of healthcare delivery and resource utilization. We aim to conduct a systematic review of changes in prescribing patterns in the WHO African region and comparison with WHO indicators in two time periods 1995-2005 and 2006-2015. METHODS Systematic searches were conducted in PubMed, Scopus, Web of science, Africa-Wide Nipad, Afri...

BACKGROUND Antibiotics have played an essential role in decreasing morbidity and mortality from infectious diseases. However, indiscriminate use and unrestricted access is contributing to the emergence of bacterial resistance. This paper reports on a situational analysis of antimicrobial use and resistance in Ghana, with focus on policy and regulation. METHODS Relevant policy documents, repor...

Perspectives Children younger than five years old are generally unable to safely swallow solid capsules and tablets larger than 10 mm. 1 Although oral liquid medicines can be prescribed, these have some disadvantages over solid medicines. Substances or excipients that solubilize the active ingredient or ensure microbial stability are included in oral liquids and these may be harmful to young ch...

Paediatric endocrinology and diabetes is a paediatric specialty with less common conditions and higher cost medicines. Access to medicines for our specialty in low and middle income countries remains limited. We analysed the content of the WHO (children and adults) and of all available national Model Lists of Essential Medicines (EMLs) for Mexico, the Caribbean, Central and South America from a...

Medicines expenditure consumes a significant proportion of public health expenditure in Thailand, where Universal Health Coverage has been in place since 2002. The National List of Essential Medicines has been successfully used as a pharmaceutical benefits package for all public health plans. All patients are eligible for all medicines included in the list free of charge by law. Health economic...

Setting the scene For many years, the global approach to pharmaceutical pricing and reimbursement policies has been informed, first and foremost, by the key differences between those systems which relied on public sector procurement and supply, and those which were based on reimbursement. The first approach was considered to be the most appropriate for developing countries. Funding for healthca...

Taxes on tobacco products generated income of around US$ 2.2 billion for the Brazilian government in 2008, but that doesn’t mean the Brazilian government is going easy on the tobacco industry. For the past two decades, Brazil has been at the forefront of global tobacco control initiatives. Vera da Costa e Silva, a public health specialist who advises the government on tobacco control, is proud ...