Access To Essential Medicines Research Articles

Barriers and facilitators to primary care for people living with HIV and diabetes in Harare.

People living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and comorbid diabetes mellitus (DM) face significant challenges owing to the complex interplay between these chronic conditions and the need for comprehensive and integrated care. Service availability and readiness for primary care are essential for the health of individuals and populations. This study aimed to explore barriers and facilitators to the provision of care to the patients with HIV and T2DM comorbidity. The study was conducted at Primary health centres in Harare, Zimbabwe. A mixed-methods design was applied. An audit of primary care facilities identified that there was adequate infrastructure and equipment for HIV and T2DM diagnosis and treatment. However, there are gaps in the availability of essential medicines and supplies, such as test strips for blood glucose monitoring. The assessment also showed that the centres had a chronic shortage of healthcare providers, including doctors, nurses and counsellors, and there was a need for additional training and support for healthcare providers in the management of HIV and T2DM. The study concludes that the delivery of health services to patients with HIV and T2DM at primary care centres in Harare, Zimbabwe, faces significant challenges. Suggestions included improved resource allocation and multisectoral collaboration to improve the delivery of healthcare services.Contribution:The research contributes insight into disparities between urban and rural primary care facilities in providing services, emphasizing the need for targeted interventions to bridge gaps and enhance care quality.

Assessment of the compliance with minimum quality standards by public primary healthcare facilities in Nigeria

Achieving universal health coverage (UHC) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) by 2030 relies on the delivery of quality healthcare services through effective primary healthcare (PHC) systems. This necessitates robust infrastructure, adequately skilled health workers and the availability of essential medicines and commodities. Despite the critical role of minimum standards in benchmarking PHC quality, no global consensus on these standards exists. Nigeria has established minimum standards to enhance healthcare accessibility and quality, including the Revised Ward Health System Strategy (RWHSS) by the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA). This paper outlines the evolution of PHC minimum standards in Nigeria, evaluates compliance with RWHSS standards across all public PHC facilities, and examines the implications for ongoing PHC revitalization efforts. The study used a cross-sectional descriptive design to assess compliance across 25 736 public PHC facilities in Nigeria. Data collection involved a national survey using a standardized assessment tool focussing on infrastructure, staffing, essential medicines and service delivery. Compliance with RWHSS minimum standards was found to be below 50% across all facilities, with median compliance scores of 40.7%. Outreach posts had a median compliance of 32.6%, level 1 facilities 31.5% and level 2+ facilities 50.9%. Key findings revealed major gaps in health infrastructure, human resources and availability of essential medicines and equipment. Compliance varied regionally, with the North-west showing the highest number of facilities but varied performance across standards. The lessons learned underscore the urgent need for targeted interventions and resource allocation to address the identified deficiencies. This study highlights the critical need for regular, comprehensive compliance assessments to guide policy-makers in identifying gaps and strengthening PHC systems in Nigeria. Recommendations include enhancing monitoring mechanisms, improving resource distribution and focussing on infrastructure and human resource development to meet UHC and SDG targets. Addressing these gaps is essential for advancing Nigeria’s healthcare system and ensuring equitable, quality care for all.

Effective Supply Chain Strategies in Addressing Demand and Supply Uncertainty: A Case Study of Ethiopian Pharmaceutical Supply Services.

Ensuring the consistent availability of essential medicines is crucial for effective healthcare systems. However, Ethiopian public health facilities have faced frequent stockouts of crucial medications, highlighting systemic challenges such as inadequate forecasting, prolonged procurement processes, a disjointed distribution system, suboptimal data quality, and a shortage of trained professionals. This study focuses on the Ethiopian Pharmaceutical Supply Services (EPSS), known for its highly unstable and volatile supply chain, aiming to identify risks and mitigation strategies. Using a mixed-method approach involving surveys and interviews, the research investigates successful and less successful strategies, key success factors, and barriers related to pharmaceutical shortages. Proactive measures such as communication, stock assessment, supervision, and streamlined procurement are emphasized as vital in mitigating disruptions, while reactive strategies like safety stock may lack long-term efficacy. The study highlights the importance of aligning supply chain strategies with product uncertainties, fostering collaboration, and employing flexible designs for resilience. Managerial implications stress the need for responsive structures that integrate data quality, technology, and visibility. This study contributes by exploring proactive and reactive strategies, elucidating key success factors for overcoming shortages in countries with unstable supply chains, and offering actionable steps for enhancing supply chain resilience. Embracing uncertainty and implementing proactive measures can help navigate volatile environments, thereby enhancing competitiveness and sustainability.

Availability of essential medicines during the COVID-19 pandemic: A qualitative study examining experiences and level of preparedness in Kenya.

This study examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the availability of essential medicines in Kenya and suggests actionable measures to enhance the country's preparedness for future pandemics. Utilising a cross-sectional qualitative design, the research combines a systematic review of the literature and 20 key informant interviews to provide a comprehensive analysis. The initial response to the pandemic involved resource reallocation, disrupting the procurement of essential medicines at national and county levels. Inefficiencies in these systems resulted in shortages and wastages of crucial medicines, exposing vulnerabilities in the health system. Furthermore, the study reveals regulatory policy weaknesses in Kenya, such as an inadequate legal framework for domestic pharmaceutical manufacturing and conflicting policies hindering medicine availability. The study recommends a multifaceted policy approach to ensure essential medicine availability during crises. Key recommendations include strengthening financial systems through increased government investments and innovative funding mechanisms, implementing price regulation policies, and enhancing the resilience of supply chain and procurement systems. Collaboration among various supply systems is essential to prevent stock-outs. Strengthening legislation and regulatory policies, increasing domestic pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity, and investing in health information systems are vital for sustained self-sufficiency and efficient service delivery. These comprehensive measures are essential to promote essential medicine availability, safeguard public health, and enhance resilience during crises.

Electronic Logistic Management Information System in Public Health Facilities and Its Implications for the Medicine Supply Chain in Singida District Council, Tanzania.

The effective management of the medicine supply chain is crucial for ensuring the availability of essential medicines and supplies in public health facilities. This study aimed to determine the utilization of the electronic logistic management information system (e-LMIS) in public health facilities and its implications for the medicine supply chain. A mixed methods approach, combining both quantitative and qualitative data collection methods, was used. The study included 106 healthcare providers from 35 public health facilities in Singida District. Six key informants were interviewed using a qualitative method. Of the 106 participants, 62.3% said they were somehow competent in e-LMIS utilization. In in-depth interviews, respondents underscored the system's utility for tracking stock levels, procurements, and managing orders. Staff shortages and a lack of customized training were mentioned as major challenges hindering efficiency in managing drug supplies. This study highlighted the positive impact of e-LMIS on various aspects of the medicine supply chain, including the timely submission of orders and enhanced inventory management. Sustained management support and the regular utilization of the e-LMIS system are crucial for building and maintaining competence among healthcare providers, thereby optimizing the medicine supply chain and ultimately improving healthcare delivery.

Accessibility and utilization of health-care services among rural–urban migrants in Ghana: A scoping review

Since the second half of the 20th century, internal migration patterns in Ghana have been dominated by movements from rural (or northern) to urban (or southern) areas. Numerous studies report wide socioeconomic gaps between the geographical north and south of Ghana, explaining the unidirectional movement in search of better opportunities. Differences in personal health profiles, values, and beliefs mean that internal migrants face a higher risk of ill health than urban natives. Compounding this issue is the barriers that impede their access to and utilization of health-care services. We synthesized evidence from existing literature to understand internal migrants’ access to and utilization of healthcare in Ghana, as well as their coping strategies. This review followed Arksey and O’Malley’s guidelines for conducting scoping reviews. We searched PubMed, EconLit, CINAHL, PsychINFO, and Medline (Ovid) electronic databases for studies published from January 2012 to June 2022. In addition, a manual literature search was conducted on Google by examining the reference lists of selected articles to identify other relevant studies. The majority of the studies (n = 12 [75%]) focused on female migrants, while 4 (25%) included both male and female migrants. This review identified several factors affecting access to health-care services for internal migrants in Ghana. These factors included infrastructural, financial, and language barriers, as well as long patient waiting times. Significantly, these barriers resulted in increased self-medication and self-diagnosis among internal migrants, leading to overall poor health outcomes. Based on the study findings, we propose a multidimensional approach to bridging the health access gap for internal migrants. This approach involves improving health system factors such as health service delivery, health workforce, availability of essential medicines, and health finance reforms to provide quality health-care services at affordable or no cost, while considering the socioeconomic and cultural conditions of the internal migrants.

Palliative care national plan implementation through stakeholder analysis

BackgroundNational palliative care plans depend upon stakeholder engagement to succeed. Assessing the capability, interest, and knowledge of stakeholders is a crucial step in the implementation of public health initiatives, as recommended by the World Health Organisation. However, utilising stakeholder analysis is a strategy underused in public palliative care.ObjectiveTo conduct a stakeholder analysis characterising a diverse group of stakeholders involved in implementing a national palliative care plan in three rural regions of an upper-middle-income country.MethodsA descriptive cross-sectional study design, complemented by a quantitative stakeholder analysis approach, was executed through a survey designed to gauge stakeholders’ levels of interest and capability in relation to five fundamental dimensions of public palliative care: provision of services, accessibility of essential medicines, palliative care education, financial support, and palliative care vitality. Stakeholders were categorised as promoters (high-power, high-interest), latent (high-power, low-interest), advocates (low-power, high-interest), and indifferent (low-power and low-interest). Stakeholder self-perceived category and knowledge level were also assessed.ResultsAmong the 65 surveyed stakeholders, 19 were categorised as promoters, 34 as advocates, 9 as latent, and 3 as indifferent. Stakeholders’ self-perception of their category did not align with the results of the quantitative analysis. When evaluated by region and palliative care dimensions the distribution of stakeholders was nonuniform. Palliative care funding was the dimension with the highest number of stakeholders categorised as indifferent, and the lowest percentage of promoters. Stakeholders categorised as promoters consistently reported a low level of knowledge, regardless of the dimension, region, or their level of interest.ConclusionsAssessing the capability, interest, and knowledge of stakeholders is a crucial step when implementing public health initiatives in palliative care. It allows for a data-driven decision-making process on how to delegate responsibilities, administer financial resources, and establish governance boards that remain engaged and work efficiently.

Strategies for reducing the burden of cardiovascular diseases in the United Arab Emirates

This commentary outlines the strategies implemented by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to reduce the burden of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) through national health policies and initiatives. These strategies aim to enable sustainable actions for CVDs prevention and control by addressing key risk factors, such as tobacco use, unhealthy dietary habits, and physical inactivity. Assessment of cardiovascular risk is fundamental for early detection and timely treatment. The UAE has reported the availability of essential medicines and basic technologies for preventing heart attack and stroke. Future directions include improving data reporting systems to provide up-to-date statistics on CVDs prevalence and risk factors, including diet, physical activity, body weight, smoking, blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol control. In addition, these efforts will cover data on the quality of care, procedures, and economic costs. Strengthening collaboration between academic research institutes and government policymakers is crucial for shaping the UAE’s research agenda. Key steps to further reduce the burden of CVDs in the UAE include enhancing primary health care and emergency medical services, building health-care worker capacity, and improving the accessibility and affordability of priority interventions.

Procurement process and shortages of essential medicines in public health facilities: A qualitative study from Nepal.

Ensuring access to essential medicines remains a formidable challenge in Nepal. The specific reasons for the shortage of essential medicines within Nepal have not been extensively investigated. This study addresses challenges associated with access to essential medicines, procurement process difficulties, and functionality of inventory management systems at different levels of public health facilities. Fifty-nine semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with health managers and service providers at provincial and local levels in six randomly selected districts of Bagmati province, Nepal. Interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim, and the results were analyzed using the inductive approach and were later mapped within the four domains of "Procurement of essential medicines". The major barriers for the effective management of essential medicines included delays in the procurement process, primarily locally, leading to frequent stock-out of essential drugs, particularly at the health post level. Additionally, challenges arise from storage problems, mainly due to insufficient storage space and the need to manage additional comorbidities related to COVID-19. Other identified challenges encompass the absence of training on logistics management information systems, a lack of information technology resources in primary health facilities, inadequate qualified human resources to operate the IT system, and insufficient power backup. Moreover, unrealistic demand estimation from the service points, inadequate transportation costs, and manual inventory management systems further contributed to the complex landscape of challenges. This study identified procurement delays as the primary cause of essential medicine shortages in Bagmati Province, Nepal. We recommend implementing comprehensive procurement guidelines, collaborative training, and dedicated budgets to address this issue. Improving the procurement and inventory management process in low-resource settings requires a well-trained workforce, suitable storage spaces, and enhanced coordinated administrative tiers within health facilities at different levels to ensure the year-round availability of essential medicines in these settings.

Factors Affecting the Availability and Utilization of Essential Medicines in India: A Systematic Review

ABSTRACT Essential medicines or drugs are recognized as highly cost-effective components within contemporary healthcare, demonstrating significant potential for improving health outcomes. The provision of essential medicines directly impacts the functioning of healthcare facilities, resulting in financial hardship. This review aims to fill knowledge gaps by examining obstacles hindering access and utilization of essential medicines in India. This study conducted a comprehensive evidence synthesis, following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, to analyse articles on the availability and utilization of essential medicines in India. The search strategy included various databases and keywords. Published, peer-reviewed articles focusing on the National/ State List of Essential Medicines and meeting specific criteria were considered. Data items included essential medicines, drug availability, utilization, and challenges. Data was extracted, synthesized, and analysed using thematic framework analysis. Out of 1,129 articles, 11 were selected for review. Studies consistently highlighted the inadequate availability of essential medicines in different Indian states. Availability of essential medicines varies in the range of 17-51 percent across major states of India. Stock-outs of medicines vary from 4 to 14 weeks. Governance issues including differential procurement mechanisms across states of India, hinder seamless availability of essential medicines. Other challenges included distribution and purchasing system inefficiencies, governance-related issues, and facility/ user-level challenges impacting drug utilization. Disruptions in utilization were observed due to improper prescription practices and non-availability of affordable options. Accessibility and affordability also affected drug utilization. Issues with supply chain management and conflicting guidelines further contributed to the obstacles faced in ensuring availability and utilization of essential medicines in India. Ensuring the availability, accessibility, and affordability of essential medicines is of utmost importance. The public health system needs to strengthen its procurement and distribution management. Strengthening the logistics support for an efficient supply of essential medicines will reduce the time lag in receipt of drugs. Guidelines on essential drugs prepared by the National Health System Resource Centre need to be strictly adhered to and monitored in inventory management system. There is an urgent need to develop a sustainable model for achieving uniformity in the availability and utilization of essential medicines in India.

How useful do communities find the health and wellness centres? A qualitative assessment of India’s new policy for primary health care

BackgroundThe policy attention to primary health care has seen a global upswing in recent years, including in India. Earlier assessments had shown that a very small proportion of Indian population used the government primary health facilities. Starting in 2018, Indian government has established more than 100,000 Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs) to increase rural population’s access to primary health care. It is crucial to know how useful people find the services of HWCs.MethodsA qualitative inquiry was made to understand the perceptions, experiences and expectations of the rural communities regarding HWCs in Chhattisgarh state. Fourteen focus group discussions were conducted with community members. The study areas were chosen to include both the central and remote districts of the state. The study used accessibility, availability, acceptability and quality (AAAQ) framework to assess HWCs.ResultsCommunity members felt that the most important change brought about by HWCs was to offer a wider range of curative services than previously available. Services for noncommunicable diseases such as hypertension and diabetes were seen as a key value addition of HWCs. People felt improvements in services for acute ailments also. The services people found missing in HWCs were for injuries, dental care and mental health. In people’s experience, the availability of essential medicines and point-of-care tests at HWCs was satisfactory and the treatment was effective. People appreciated the supportive behaviour of health workers in HWCs. They did not find the referrals from HWCs as excessive but often faced difficulties in receiving necessary services at higher facilities.ConclusionsThe assessment based on community perceptions showed that the services of HWCs matched well with people’s needs of curative primary care. It shows that people are willing to use the government facilities for primary health care if the services are relevant, adequately functional and accessible.

The availability of essential medicines in primary health centres in Indonesia: achievements and challenges across the archipelago

Indonesia is making significant strides toward achieving universal health coverage, which involves providing free access to essential medicines. This study examines the availability of essential medicine in primary health centres (PHCs) across Indonesia, the reasons why medicines are unavailable, and the extent to which communities have access to alternative dispensing points. Enumerators visited each of the 9831PHCs in all 514 districts to assess the availability of 60 essential medicines and identify reasons for any absent medicines. We correlated the results with the national village census to assess the relationship between availability, poverty, and access to alternative dispensing points. Medicine availability varied greatly. The median availability for 17 priority medicines was 82%, while 58% of the broader selection of 60 essential medicines was present. The availability of maternal and childcare medicines was highest (73%) and lowest for mental health (42%). The main reasons for absence were that medicines were deemed unnecessary (46%) or not supplied (38%). The Java/Bali region had the highest medicines availability, and rural areas in Eastern Indonesia had the lowest. In these districts, the population is financially struggling, most dependent on free medicines from public providers, and had the least access to alternative dispensing points. The availability of priority medicines in PHCs is relatively high, while public-paid prices are low by international standards. To improve availability of all essential medicines, the government should prioritize areas with the highest need, increase funding for PHCs in remote areas, and implement transparent monitoring of medicines availability. Indonesian Government.

Access to essential medicines used in the management of noncommunicable diseases in Southern Ethiopia: Analysis using WHO/HAI methodology.

This study aims to assess access to essential medicines used in the management of noncommunicable diseases through analysis of the availability, prices, and affordability of these essential medicines in Arba Minch town, Gamo Zone, Southern Ethiopia. A cross-sectional design was carried out using the World Health Organization/health action international methodology between 2 March and 2 May 2023, within public and private healthcare facilities located in Arba Minch town, Southern Ethiopia. The median price ratio served as a metric. Statistical tests like the Shapiro-Wilk and Kolmogorov-Smirnov were utilized to assess the normal distribution of price data. The Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney U test was also employed to compare median buyer's prices (patient prices) between public and private healthcare institutions. Treatment affordability was determined by estimating the number of days' wages required by the lowest-paid government employee in Ethiopia to afford the prescribed medication regimen. Among 23 health facilities surveyed, the pooled availability of essential medicine used in the management of noncommunicable diseases was 18.7% (range: 0%-30.1%), with the public and private facilities contributing 16.3% and 38.3%, respectively. The overall percentage of availability originator brand versions was 1.1% for overall health sectors, 0.6% for public sectors, and 1.2% for private sectors. The overall percent availability of lowest price generics was 36.2% (range: 0%-26.2%; public: 32.0%; private: 37.1%). Only seven lowest price generics satisfied the World Health Organization target of 80% and above. The overall median price of lowest price generic medicines in private was two times higher than in public sectors. The top five median price scorers were amlodipine, furosemide, insulin, beclomethasone, and salbutamol. The Mann-Whitney U test showed that 11.6% of lowest price generics medicines had a statistically significant median price disparity between the public and private sectors (p < 0.05). The overall percent of unaffordability was found to be 100.0%, (public: 70.4; private: 100.0%). This study revealed the limited availability and potential financial burdens on patients seeking essential noncommunicable disease medications. Limited availability suggests the need for better supply chain management and consistent stock availability. The price disparities and affordability challenges identified underscore the necessity for policy interventions such as price regulation and subsidized programs to ensure equitable access to essential noncommunicable disease medications in Arba Minch town, Southern Ethiopia.

Grading of recommendations, assessment, development and evaluations concept 7: issues and insights linking guideline recommendations to trustworthy essential medicine lists

ObjectivesGuidelines and essential medicine lists (EMLs) bear similarities and differences in the process that lead to decisions. Access to essential medicines is central to achieve universal health coverage. The World Health Organization (WHO) EML has guided prioritization of essential medicines globally for nearly 50 years, and national EMLs (NEMLs) exist in over 130 countries. Guideline and EML decisions, at WHO or national levels, are not always coordinated and aligned. We sought to explore challenges, and potential solutions, for decision-making to support trustworthy medicine selection for EMLs from a Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations (GRADE) Working Group perspective. We primarily focus on the WHO EML; however, our findings may be applicable to NEML decisions as well. Study Design and SettingWe identified key challenges in connecting the EML to health guidelines by involving a broad group of stakeholders and assessing case studies including real applications to the WHO EML, South Africa NEML, and a multiple sclerosis guideline connected to a WHO EML application for multiple sclerosis treatments. To address challenges, we utilized the results of a survey and feedback from the stakeholders, and iteratively met as a project group. We drafted a conceptual framework of challenges and potential solutions. We presented a summary of the results for feedback to all attendees of the GRADE Working Group meetings in November 2022 (approximately 120 people) and in May 2023 (approximately 100 people) before finalizing the framework. ResultsWe prioritized issues and insights/solutions that addressed the connections between the EML and health guidelines. Our suggested solutions include early planning alignment of guideline groups and EMLs, considering shared participation to strengthen linkage, further clarity on price/cost considerations, and using explicit shared criteria to make guideline and EML decisions. We also provide recommendations to strengthen the connection between WHO EML and NEMLs including through contextualization methods. ConclusionThis GRADE concept article, jointly developed by key stakeholders from the guidelines and EMLs field, identified key conceptual issues and potential solutions to support the continued advancement of trustworthy EMLs. Adopting structured decision criteria that can be linked to guideline recommendations bears the potential to advance health equity and gaps in availability of essential medicines within and between countries.

ENHANCING HEALTHCARE QUALITY AMONG COMMUNITY HEALTH FACILITIES WITH RESULTS-BASED FUNDING IN EASTERN UGANDA

This study examines the effects of Result-Based Funding (RBF) on the healthcare quality in Health Centre (HC) III in Jinja District concerning patient waiting time, drug stockout, choice of healthcare, and availability of essential medicines in Uganda's community health facilities. The research used a cross-sectional survey design and found that results-based funding like timely funding, and funding size had a significant relationship with healthcare quality. Management practices also had a strong positive correlation with healthcare quality, but most importantly management practices moderated the relationship between results-based funding and healthcare quality among Health Centre IIIs in Jinja District. The study recommends increasing the size of RBF, sending or providing timely funds, improving the fund size, and building and maintaining results-based incentives for staff that implement activities at the health facilities. Health Centre management to continue activity planning, improve staffing levels, carry out regular monitoring of all activities supported by the RBF programme, and ensure that storage capacity is enabled for the safety of essential medicines and other stores.

DETERMINANTS OF SELF-REFERRAL FROM PRIMARY TO SECONDARY LEVEL HEALTH FACILITIES AMONG OUTPATIENTS IN TANZANIA

Introduction &#x0D; In Tanzania, self-referrals have been one of the sources of underutilization of primary-level health facilities resulting in the overutilization and overburdening of secondary-level health facilities. A significant number of patients receiving services at the outpatient departments in the secondary-level health facilities could have been served at the primary health facilities. Understanding of determinants of self-referral is critical to informing important interventions to improve the referral processes and rational utilization of health facilities at the two levels. &#x0D; Methods&#x0D; A cross-sectional study was conducted among 230 outpatients at Katavi Regional Referral Hospital in Tanzania. A convenient sampling method was used to enroll study participants. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. STATA version 15 was used to analyze data descriptively while the chi-square test was performed to establish the association between dependent and independent variables at a p-value of less than 0.05.&#x0D; Results&#x0D; The magnitude of self-referral was 66.5%. The perceived determinants of self-referral were quality of care offered (90.8 %), availability of medicine (89.4%), proximity of health facility (88.8%), and patient-perceived severity of the disease (86.7%). The availability of medicine (p= 0.015), quality of care offered (p=0.00), location of the facility (p=0.044), place of residence (p=0.04), and patient-perceived severity of disease (p=0.017) were statistically significantly associated with the self-referral practices.&#x0D; Conclusion&#x0D; The magnitude of self-referral practice was high. Availability of essential medicines, quality of care offered by the hospital, hospital proximity, patient-perceived severity of the disease, and availability of barriers to accessing healthcare in lower-level facilities were factors significantly associated with the self-referral practice. It is recommended that continuous investment should be made in lower-level facilities to ensure patients receive the care they need at every point of care.

A national survey on registered products, availability, prices, and affordability of 100 essential medicines in community pharmacies across Sri Lanka

IntroductionAvailability of essential medicines that meet the expected quality standards, in appropriate dosage forms at affordable prices is a fundamental prerequisite to fulfill healthcare needs of given a population. This study assessed available products, prices and affordability of essential medicines (EM) in community pharmacies in Sri Lanka with comparison of registration status from the National Medicines Regulatory Authority(NMRA).MethodsA cross-sectional island-wide survey of 80 pharmacies was conducted according to World Health Organization and Health Action International Manual (WHO/HAI). Hundred medicines were selected from the global core list(n = 14), regional core list(n = 16) and the Sri Lanka Essential Medicine List (SL-EML) (n = 70) based on healthcare needs. Number of registered products in 2015 and 2021 were compared.FindingsAverage availability was 85.4%(± 12.31) and availability was lowest in the Northern province (69.38 ± 21.18%)(p = 0.008). Availability between the state owned, franchise and privately owned pharmacies was not significantly different (p > 0.05). 89.4% medicines were affordable except for amiodarone, hydroxychloroquine, sitagliptin, soluble insulin, isophane insulin, losartan, levodopa carbidopa combination, clonazepam and ceftriaxone. The median price ratio (MPR) of 33.7% of medicines was less than 1 and MPR of 37.1% originator brands (OB) was over 3. Median number of generic brands in the market was 8(range 2–44), 9% of medicines had 20 or more products in the market and 72.7% medicines had more products available than the number registered in 2015. The average number of registered products were similar in 2015 (8.27) and 2021(7.59) (p = 0.15).ConclusionThe overall availability of EMs in Sri Lanka was high in all categories of community pharmacies. Medicines were largely affordable and reasonably priced in 2015, although OBs were generally more expensive. Majority of medicines had more products in the market than the number of registered products.

Accessibility crisis of essential medicines at Sudanese primary healthcare facilities: a cross-sectional drugs’ dispensaries assessment and patients’ perspectives

BackgroundAccess to essential medicines is a critical component of universal health coverage. However, the availability of essential medicines in Sudan isn’t well studied. As well, most Sudanese people lack health insurance, making out-of-pocket spending the primary source of drug financing. Therefore, the affordability of medicines in Sudan is questionable, with only 30% of the total population being covered by a public health service or public health insurance. We undertook this study to assess the availability and prices of essential medicines in public-sector health facilities in Khartoum state. Moreover, this study aims at assessing patients’ perceived affordability of essential medicines, and accommodation and acceptability of the public facility.MethodsA cross-sectional study was carried out at 30 primary healthcare facilities’ drug dispensaries across three districts in Khartoum state. Within each Centre’s dispensary unit, a standardized checklist evaluated the availability and affordability of 21 essential medicines selected from Sudan’s national essential medicines list and assessed their storage conditions. Furthermore, 630 patients were selected from all dispensary units for an exit interview that assessed their perceived accessibility, acceptability, accommodation, and affordability of essential medicines. Data were collected through the Kobo toolbox and analyzed using SPSS version 26.ResultsParticipants’ ratings of accessibility, affordability, accommodation, and acceptability were 3.7/5, 1.5/4, 5/6, and 5.4/6, respectively, with a 26.7% full access and weak correlation between some of the indices. The overall availability of adults and pediatric medicines was 36.8% 6.7%, respectively. Cost of a single course of treatment for 10 and 16 drugs out of the 19 drugs consumed exceeds the daily wage of insured and uninsured patients, with a median price ratio of 16.4 and 62.8, respectively. Moreover, the dispensary area conditions were found to be of good quality, yet the storerooms were not functioning in 40% of the outlets.ConclusionPatients had limited access to their needed drugs due to high prices and physical unavailability, and primary healthcare capacities are not meeting the demands of citizens. The outcomes for the patients’ access variables (accessibility, accommodation, acceptance, and affordability) are comparable to those in countries with low incomes. Ensuring access to free medicines is likely to improve patients’ satisfaction with healthcare services and reduce private expenditure on medicines, which is a long-term, sustainable way towards universal health coverage in Sudan.

Health Systems Strengthening: A Panacea to Improving Consumption of Public Healthcare Services in Northern Namibia: A Cross Sectional Study

The aim of the study was to assess the impact of health systems strengthening on the consumption of public healthcare services in Northern Namibia. The study assessed how the following components of health systems strengthening influence the consumption of public health care services; (1) timeliness and readiness of services rendered, (2) health workforce competence, (3) health information systems, (4) availability of essential medicines, (5) healthcare financing and lastly (6) leadership and governance. We used a quantitative descriptive cross-sectional study design. 672 respondents were identified using the purposive sampling technique and a well-structured Likert-scaled questionnaire was used for the interviews. Collected information was entered into data sets and analysis was done using Excel and Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 23.0 software. The results were that over 95% of the respondents strongly agreed with each of the factors assessed. Health systems strengthening remains an important factor in the delivery of health services. This was taken note of when 48% of the participants agreed that a good competent health workforce determines their choice of healthcare facility when they are not feeling well. This was further augmented when 49% of the participants agreed that healthcare financing influences people’s choice to go and seek healthcare services from government facilities. It was concluded that health systems strengthening is the cornerstone for improved consumption of public health care services in Northern Namibia. We recommend that governments should develop strong health systems at all levels of health service delivery. Keywords: Consumption, Health Systems Strengthening, Public Healthcare Services.

Availability of Essential Medicines in Healthcare Facilities Offering Maternal and Reproductive Healthcare Services in Nigeria

Availability of Essential Medicines in Healthcare Facilities Offering Maternal and Reproductive Healthcare Services in Nigeria