| dc.description.abstract | This was a study which sought to investigate the perceptions and experiences of private
health care providers in Mafikeng, North West Province about generic medicines. The
escalating cost of medicine in South Africa and elsewhere in the world has necessitated
government intervention to come up with strategies to make health care accessible and
affordable to the majority of the people.
In South Africa, the Medicine and Related Substances Control Amendment Act (Act I0I
of 1965), was implemented in May 2003. The Act makes it compulsory for pharmacist to
offer patients generic medicines, apart from exceptions listed by the Medical Control
Council and, if substitution takes place, to inform the doctor.
The study was a prospective, cross- sectional survey of private health care providers in
the greater Mafikeng area using a self- administered structured questionnaire. Participants
received a structured questionnaire by hand mail and were given the same time to
complete it. The questionnaires were them collected from their respective rooms.
The main outcome measures were age, level of education, current occupation/profession
and their perception and experiences about generic medicines. The total number of
respondents was thirty two (32) out of forty (40) private health care providers who
received the copies of the questionnaires. One questionnaire was incompletely answered
and was therefore excluded from the final analysis. Seven questionnaires were returned
unanswered. Age ranged from 26 to 51 and all had one or two university degrees.
On average, private health care providers in Mafikeng perceived generic medicines and
patent medicines to be identical and bioequivalent. Majority of the respondents
prescribed generic medicines as their first line of treatment and were aware of the
mandatory generic substitution law. According to the respondents, the majority of
patients were not well informed about generic medicines. Majority of respondents were
satisfied with the safety, quality, performance characteristics, intended use and route of
administration of generic medicines.
There is a need for a common essential drug list that will be used by all medical aids
schemes in South Africa, wider generic prescribing in both the public and private health
sector, speeding up the process of manufacturing generics, health care providers
complying fully with the mandatory generic substitution law, parallel importation of
generic medicines when a need arises and a widespread promotional campaigns targeting
mainly consumers and health professionals. | en_US |
