Knowledge and perceptions of physicians from private medical centres towards generic medicines in the State of Perak, Malaysia: Findings and implications

Abstract

ObjectiveTo evaluate the knowledge and perceptions of physicians from private medical centres towards generic medicines.Method and settingA cross-sectional questionnaire-based mail survey involving 172 physicians in 16 private medical centres in Perak, Malaysia was conducted.ResultsA total of 105 physicians participated in the study, giving a response rate of 61.0%. Most participants were male (81.9%), had a median age of 47 years (range 34–72 years), obtained their medical degree from Malaysia (56.2%) and had been practicing for a median of 21 years (range 8–49 years). Although only 5.7% of the participants correctly identified the bioequivalence regulatory standards for generic medicines, 48.6% believed that generic medicines are bioequivalent to their counterpart innovator brands. In this study, 35.3% of participants had doubts about efficacy of generic medicines and 58.1% had doubts about their safety. In this study, 47.6% of physicians believed that advertisements by pharmaceutical companies affect t...