Medicine Donation Research Articles

Medicine donations: a review of policies and practices

BackgroundTo help promote the effective delivery of drug donations, the World Health Organization (WHO) developed the Guidelines for Medicine Donations. The need for revisions is timely given the large-scale influx of medicine donations since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study analyses current policies of donors and recipients that are commensurate with the recommendations in the Guidelines and examines current practices, challenges, and revision suggestions.ResultsA search for medicine donation policies of donors and recipients was conducted in May/June 2022 and repeated in January 2023. Potential donor countries were identified from the high-income countries on the United Nation’s (UN) List of G20 Countries. Potential pharmaceutical company donors were selected from those with 2021 revenue of $30 billion or greater. Potential non-government organization donors came from the WHO list of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and two other sources. Potential recipient countries were those on the UN List of Least Developed Countries. These four lists were supplemented with actual donors and recipients identified from the literature. All policies retrieved were screened to identify which of the 12 recommendations from the WHO Guidelines were incorporated. We identified 38 policies from 1 donor country, 6 brand-name multinational pharmaceutical companies, 6 NGOs and 25 recipient countries. Most policies incorporated all 12 recommendations. Twenty-five of the 38 policies were developed in 2010 or later. The majority of actual donors and recipients did not have policies that were publicly available. A rapid literature review for publications from 2010 onwards identified challenges in implementing the WHO Guidelines and suggested for revisions. Challenges included: (1) information management; (2) medication presentation; (3) influence from the pharmaceutical industry; (4) donation sustainability; and (5) the belief that donations are inherently good.ConclusionsOur findings suggest that both donors and recipients could further align their policies with the existing Guidelines and both groups should be consulted on any revisions to ensure that their experiences are reflected and their needs are addressed. While the current WHO Guidelines for Medicine Donations are a solid base for medical humanitarian efforts, evidence points to the need for an update to meet current challenges.

A Web Application for Medicine, Food, Books & Cloth Collection and Donation

Abstract: The increase within the quantity of wastage in terms of Medicines, food, books, clothes make the necessity in terms of donation. There are many those that donates food, clothes and books etc. manually by vising completely different places on their own so as to resolve this crisis of needed things wastage in our country. Donations like Medicines, food, clothes and books once given with correct organization & correct management will save many lives and might ease the suffering of the poor and impoverished ones. The “Altruistic ones” acts as a connecting link between the donors and also the NGOs. Considering the number of wastages goes in a very year, donation of unused medicines together with alternative donations like food, books and clothes appear a decent thanks to get out of it because the world is growing quick with the new technologies individuals also are adapting it. Through our web-based application donor from anyplace will present the items at one platform.

Authentication of Unused Medicine Domination for NGOs

This project aims to donate medicines which are unused. The unused medicine can be donated for further utilization by a needy person. This application helps the user to donate unused medicines to NGO. Admin will login and manage members by deleting and blocking the users providing improper or expired medicines. Admin has to verify the uploaded image for their expiry date.NGO manages the stock which helps to maintain a record of the available medicine. Members can also check their previous data of medicine transactions. The donation of unused medicines is not accepted worldwide, although it is legal in some countries. A constant increase in the rate of prescription writing has prompted several charity organizations to collect a growing number of unused medicines. WHO guidelines for drug donations discourage donation of unused medicines, as this may create a number of problems. Detrimental effects of drug donations for use in emergency situations have been reported, as the arrival of unsorted, useless and expired medicines requires management and sorting, which may take up the time of health workers and eventually lead to the appearance of these drugs on the black market. However, cases of regulated donations have been reported in the USA, where several states have adopted laws in order to facilitate the redistribution of unused drugs to indigent and uninsured patients.This project aims to donate medicines which are unused. The unused medicine can be donated for further utilization by a needy person. This application helps the user to donate unused medicines to NGO. Admin will login and manage members by deleting and blocking the users providing improper or expired medicines. Admin has to verify the uploaded image for their expiry date.NGO manages the stock which helps to maintain a record of the available medicine.Members can also check their previous data of medicine transactions.

MRI combined with early clinical variables are excellent outcome predictors for newborn infants undergoing therapeutic hypothermia after perinatal asphyxia.

BackgroundBinary prediction-models for outcome [death, cognition, presence and severity of cerebral palsy (CP)], using MRI and early clinical data applicable for individual outcome prediction have not been developed.MethodsFrom Dec 1st 2006 until Dec 31st 2013, we recruited 178 infants into a population-based cohort with moderate or severe hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE) including postnatal collapse (PNC, n = 12) and additional diagnoses (n = 12) using CoolCap/TOBY-trial entry-criteria including depressed amplitude-integrated EEG (aEEG). Early clinical/biochemical variables and MRI scans (median day 8) were obtained in 168 infants. Injury severity was scored for cortex, basal ganglia/thalami (BGT), white matter (WM) and posterior limb of the internal capsule, summating to a total injury score (TIS, range 0–11). Outcome was categorized as adverse or favourable at 18–24 months from Bayley-III domains (cut-off 85) and neurological examination including CP classification.FindingsHIE and entry-aEEG severity were stable throughout the study. Outcome was favourable in 133/178 infants and adverse in 45/178: 17 died, 28 had low Cognition/Language scores, (including 9 with severe CP and 6 mild); seven had mild CP with favourable cognitive outcome. WMxBGT product scores and TIS were strong outcome predictors, and prediction improved when clinical/biochemical variables were added in binary logistic regression. The Positive Predictive Value for adverse outcome was 88%, increasing to 95% after excluding infants with PNC and additional diagnoses. Using WMxBGT in the regression predicted 8 of the 9 children with severe CP.InterpretationBinary logistic regression with WMxBGT or TIS and clinical variables gave excellent outcome prediction being 12% better than single variable cross-tabulation. Our MRI scoring and regression models are readily accessible and deserve investigation in other cohorts for group and individual prediction.FundingWe thank the National Health Service (NHS) and our Universities and funders in UK and Norway: SPARKS, The Moulton Foundation, The Norwegian Research Council, The Lærdal Foundation for Acute Medicine and charitable donations for their support for cooling therapy.

Corrigendum to: Medicine donation programmes supporting the global drive to end the burden of neglected tropical diseases.

Corrigendum to: Medicine donation programmes supporting the global drive to end the burden of neglected tropical diseases.

Medicine donation programmes supporting the global drive to end the burden of neglected tropical diseases.

Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are targeted for global control or elimination. Recognising that the populations most in need of medicines to target NTDs are those least able to support and sustain them financially, the pharmaceutical industry created mechanisms for donating medicines and expertise to affected countries through partnerships with the WHO, development agencies, non-governmental organisations and philanthropic donors. In the last 30 y, companies have established programmes to donate 17 different medicines to overcome the burden of NTDs. Billions of tablets, capsules, intravenous and oral solutions have been donated, along with the manufacturing, supply chains and research necessary to support these efforts. Industry engagement has stimulated other donors to support NTDs with funds and oversight so that the ‘heath benefit’ return on investment in these programmes is truly a ‘best value in public health’. Many current donations are ‘open-ended’, promising support as long as necessary to achieve defined health targets. Extraordinary global health advances have been made in filariasis, onchocerciasis, trachoma, trypanosomiasis, leishmaniasis, schistosomiasis, intestinal parasites and others; and these advances are taking place in the context of strengthening health systems and meeting the global development goals espoused by the WHO. The pharmaceutical manufacturers, already strong collaborators in initiating or supporting these disease-targeted programmes, have committed to continuing their partnership roles in striving to meet the targets of the WHO's new NTD roadmap to 2030.

The role of medicine donations in the global programme for the elimination of lymphatic filariasis.

World Health Assembly Resolution 50.29, adopted in 1997, committed the World Health Organization (WHO) and its member states to eliminate lymphatic filariasis (LF) as a public health problem. In 2000, to support this ambitious goal and the health ministries in the >70 LF-endemic countries, the Global Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis (GPELF) was created. The resulting WHO elimination strategy consists of two main components: to stop the spread of infection by interrupting transmission and to alleviate the suffering of affected populations (by controlling morbidity). The GPELF has brought together a broad global partnership of public and private actors, including three pharmaceutical companies with headquarters in three different continents. The medicine donations programmes from GlaxoSmithKline, MSD (trade name of Merck & Co. Inc., Kenilworth, NJ, USA) and Eisai have enabled significant achievements during the first 20 y of the GPELF and are positioned to provide essential contributions to the GPELF's goals for the next decade. As we celebrate the progress towards LF elimination during the GPELF's first 20 y, this article reflects on the factors that led to the creation of the three donation programmes, the contributions these programmes have made and some lessons learned along the way. We close by emphasizing our continued commitments to LF elimination and perspectives on the next decade.

Corporate social responsibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain: An optimized medicine donation scheme

This paper investigates the coordination of a two-level pharmaceutical supply chain (PSC) consisting of a pharmacy and a pharma-supplier under corporate social responsibility (CSR) and uncertain demand. In this regard, the medicine donation scheme to the deprived areas and the take-back plan for collecting surplus medicine in the pharmacy site have been introduced to enhance public health and CSR performance in the proposed PSC. The pharma-supplier determines the donation amount at the start of the sale period. Subsequently, the pharmacy decides on the amount of medications order; afterward, the pharm-supplier makes a decision about take-back quantity at the specified time within the cycle. A customized revenue- and cost-sharing (CRCS) contract is also developed to coordinate the channel. Although deciding as a centralized entity optimizes the total profitability of the PSC, our findings reveal that it cannot guarantee the profitability of both channel members. Numerical investigations indicate that using the presented coordination scheme not only motivates the channel members to participate in the social/philanthropic activity but also mitigates pharmaceutical wastages and its potential losses. This finding means the proposed coordination mechanism can adjust the contract parameters in such a way that members have enough motivation to participate in channel optimal decision-making, and also ensure the profitability of both PSC members.

Tribute: Norma Margaret Irvine

We were truly saddened to hear that Norma had passed away. Norma started volunteering at the Royal Pharmaceutical Society Museum in 2012. Her project involved cataloguing a large donation of medicines, from as far back as the 1930s, onto the museum database. She was familiar with many of these medicines, having dispensed them during her […]

PROGRAMA DE REDISTRIBUIÇÃO DE MEDICAMENTOS: ESTUDO DA ADESÃO DE FARMÁCIAS E CONSUMIDORES

O artigo tem por objetivo investigar a adesão das farmácias e consumidores em um programa de redistribuição de medicamentos próximos da data de validade. Para isso, um modelo de investigação formado por hipóteses relacionadas aos dois públicos é proposto. Os resultados demonstraram que 48% das farmácias pesquisadas são favoráveis ao programa e aceitariam participar com a doação de medicamentos próximos da data de validade. Já a pesquisa realizada com os consumidores indica que a economia gerada é o principal ponto positivo, enquanto a confiança na eficácia dos medicamentos tende a ser uma possível restrição à adesão ao programa.

Medical donations are not always free: an assessment of compliance of medicine and medical device donations with World Health Organization guidelines (2009-2017).

Medicine and medical device donations have the potential to improve access to healthcare in some of the poorest parts of the world, but can do more harm than good. World Health Organization guidelines advise donors on how to make effective and useful donations. Our objective was to assess compliance of recent medicine or medical device donations with WHO guidelines from 2009 onwards. We searched media, academic and gray literature, including industry and organizational documents, to identify reports describing specific incidences of the donation of medicines or devices. We collected data on donation characteristics and guideline compliance. We identified 88 reports describing 53 donations. Most did not comply with at least some items in WHO guidelines and no reports provided sufficient information to assess compliance against all items. Donations that fail to comply with guidelines may be excessive, expired and/or burden recipient countries with storage and disposal costs. It was estimated that 40-70% of donated medical devices are not used as they are not functional, appropriate, or staff lack training. More effective donations involved needs assessments, training and the use of existing distribution networks. The donation of medicines and medical devices is frequently inadequately reported and at times inappropriate. Guidelines need to be enforced to ensure effective donations.

Solidarity and the problem of structural injustice in healthcare

The concept of solidarity has recently come to prominence in the healthcare literature, addressing the motivation for taking seriously the shared vulnerabilities and medical needs of compatriots and for acting to help them meet these needs. In a recent book, Prainsack and Buyx take solidarity as a commitment to bear costs to assist others regarded as similar, with implications for governing health databases, personalized medicine, and organ donation. More broadly, solidarity has been understood normatively to call for 'standing with' or assisting fellow community members and possibly also distant others in regard to their needs, whether for its own sake or in order to realize the demands of justice. I argue here that the understanding of solidarity in the existing bioethics literature is unduly restricted by not sufficiently theorizing the notion of structural (or systemic) injustice and its import for understanding solidarity. Extending traditional conceptions of labor and social movement solidarity, I contrast unitary solidarity within a given group with 'networking solidarities' across groups. I analyze the meaning of structural injustice and its significance for solidarity, including countering institutionally entrenched inequalities and economic exploitation. I then apply this broadened conception to healthcare, discussing structural problems with the U.S. insurance system and the solidarity movements addressing its deficiencies. I analyze some natural disasters and global health challenges that were aggravated by structural injustices, along with the solidarity movements they engendered. Finally, I revisit the questions of governing health databases and of personalized medicine with the enlarged conception of solidarity in view.

Donation programme of returned medicines: role of donors and point of view of beneficiaries.

Donation of returned medicines is a debated health policy issue as it is discouraged by WHO, but accepted in some countries. Lessons learned from a donation programme of returned medicines carried out in Europe were documented. The donation programme we reviewed followed a strict protocol for collection, sorting and distribution of returned drugs, in order to avoid the major limitations associated with unused medicine donations. Over a period of 3 years, 23 145 boxes of medicines were donated to 14 organizations operating in Europe, Africa and Latin America. The donations covered about one-third of the volume of medicines used by beneficiary organizations. The programme helped to decrease expenditure by both patients and health facilities.

Industry-Led Access-To-Medicines Initiatives In Low- And Middle-Income Countries: Strategies And Evidence.

Global biopharmaceutical companies are increasingly establishing access-to-medicines (AtM) initiatives in low- and middle-income countries. We reviewed the initiatives of twenty-one research-based global biopharmaceutical companies to assess their strategies for improving access and the quality of evidence on the impact of their initiatives. The number of operating initiatives increased from 17 in 2000 to 102 in 2015. Of the 120 different AtM initiatives identified, 48percent used a medicine donation strategy, and 44percent used a price reduction strategy. While companies have frequently claimed that their initiatives have had positive impacts, we found published evaluations for only seven initiatives, and nearly all of the evaluations were of low (62percent) or very low (32percent) quality. It is clear that the biopharmaceutical industry has increased its commitment to improving access to medicines in low- and middle-income countries. However, companies should do more to generate high-quality evidence on their initiatives, and the global health community should do more to assist the developing of evidence about the initiatives.

Abstract bodies, concrete risks: clinical devices and the health of ova donors in Argentine reproductive medicine

Using a methodological perspective grounded in science and technology studies, this article analyzes two sociotechnical devices used in Argentine reproductive medicine (biostatistical measures and donation registries) with the aim of controlling both the so-called "genetic risk" arising from the use of donated ova as well as the health risks to female donors. By examining how the deployment of monitoring criteria disregards the specificity of ova donation, the article suggests that it is not the absence of control measures and clinical criteria that produces an inadequate monitoring of such risks, but rather the concrete ways in which such measures are implemented that results in potential harms to the health of female donors.

Impact of leishmaniasis in women: a practical review with an update on my ISD-supported initiative to combat leishmaniasis in Yemen (ELYP).

Stigma is synonymous with leishmaniasis, an endemic deadly flesh-eating disease in Yemen that affects predominantly poor rural women and children. Women with leishmaniasis often present late and experience not only physical deformities and the risk of death, but also the painful stigma of the disease and its consequences, a similar situation to that of leprosy decades ago. The International Society of Dermatology–sponsored community dermatology project Eradication of Leishmaniasis from Yemen Project has made a difference in the leishmaniasis situation in Yemen and addressed its magnitude. The program eradicated leishmaniasis from some areas, dealt with and improved its alarming prevalence among children and women who are the neglected and highest risk groups, and solved some issues associated with poor access to proper drugs. Medicine donation has enabled women with leishmaniasis to freely receive medicine they otherwise would not have been able to afford, reduced their mortality and morbidity, and minimized the extensive impact the socio-aesthetic stigma has on their lives. Our cause has attracted local and global attention to these problematic issues.

The Neglected Tropical Disease Non-governmental Development Organization Network (NNN): the value and future of a global network aiming to control and eliminate NTDs.

The Neglected Tropical Disease Non-governmental Development Organization Network (NNN) (www.ntdngdonetwork.org) is a global forum for non-governmental development organizations (NGDOs) working to control or eliminate neglected tropical diseases (NTDs): currently including, leprosy, lymphatic filariasis (LF), onchocerciasis, schistosomiasis (SCH), soil-transmitted helminthiasis (STH) and trachoma. Each of these diseases has elimination as a target where feasible and each receives generous donations of medicines from the pharmaceutical industry. The NNN was formed at a meeting in Accra, Ghana, in September 2009 when several existing NTD-specific coordination groups combined forces following a general trend towards integrated NTD control and elimination. Today, the NNN is composed of five NTD-specific NGDO coordination groups: the LF NGDO Network; the International Coalition for Trachoma Control (ICTC) (http://www.trachomacoalition.org/node/873); the NGDO Coordination Group for Onchocerciasis Elimination; the SCH/STH NGDO Coordination Group; and the International Federation of Anti-Leprosy Associations (ILEP) (http://www.ilepfederation.org/ about-us/history-of-ilep/). In addition to these five diseasecoordination groups, the NNN has two thematic working groups: 1. Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH), and 2. Disease Management, Disability and Inclusion (DMDI). These working groups allow NNN members to address key cross-cutting issues that are common to the targeted NTDs. Together, these coordinating and working groups (Figure 1 and Table 1) comprise nearly 80 NGDO members of the NNN, working directly to support the world’s most underserved populations suffering from the NTDs by:

Improvements for international medicine donations: a review of the World Health Organization Guidelines for Medicine Donations, 3rd edition.

Some humanitarian and development organizations respond to major natural disasters and emergencies by donating medicines. Many provide medicines on a routine basis to support health systems, particularly those run by Faith-Based Organizations. Although such donations can provide essential medicines to populations in great need, inappropriate donations also take place, with burdensome consequences. The World Health Organization (WHO) has developed the interagency Guidelines for Medicine Donations for use by donors and recipients in the context of emergency aid and international development assistance. Although comprehensive in nature and transferable to various emergency situations, adjustments to both content and formatting would improve this resource. Recommendations for the next version of these guidelines include: specific wording and consistent formatting; definition of who is a recipient, clear distinction between acute and long-term emergencies, and proper donation procedures pertaining to each; inclusion of visual aides such as flowcharts, checklists, and photos; and improving the citations system.

Intensive care medicine and organ donation: Exploring the last frontiers?

The main, universal problem for transplantation is organ scarcity. The gap between offer and demand grows wider every year and causes many patients in waiting list to die. In Spain, 90% of transplants are done with organs taken from patients deceased in brain death but this has a limited potential. In order to diminish organ shortage, alternative strategies such as donations from living donors, expanded criteria donors or donation after circulatory death, have been developed. Nevertheless, these types of donors also have their limitations and so are not able to satisfy current organ demand. It is necessary to reduce family denial and to raise donation in brain death thus generalizing, among other strategies, non-therapeutic elective ventilation. As intensive care doctors, cornerstone to the national donation program, we must consolidate our commitment with society and organ transplantation. We must contribute with the values proper to our specialization and try to reach self-sufficiency by rising organ obtainment.

Global programme to eliminate lymphatic filariasis: the processes underlying programme success.

Lymphatic filariasis (LF) is caused by filarial worms that live in the lymphatic system and commonly lead to lymphoedema, elephantiasis, and hydrocele. LF is recognized as endemic in 73 countries and territories; an estimated 1.39 billion (thousand million) people live in areas where filariasis has been endemic and is now targeted for treatment [1]. Global momentum to eliminate LF has developed over the past 15 years as a result not only of research demonstrating the value of single-dose treatment strategies and point-of-care diagnostic tools, but also of both the generous donations of medicines from the following committed pharmaceutical companies: GlaxoSmithKline (albendazole), Merck (ivermectin), and Eisai (diethylcarbamazine; DEC), and the essential financial support for programme implementation from the donor community [2]. During 2011, more than 50 countries carried out LF elimination programmes, and more than 500 million people received mass treatment [1]. A principal reason for the programme's dramatic expansion and success to date has been the galvanizing of efforts of all key partners around a common policy framework created and coordinated through the World Health Organization's Global Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis (GPELF). This report, rather than highlighting the very considerable contributions of each individual partner or even chronicling most of the specific achievements of the GPELF, instead focuses on the details of the underlying processes themselves and their importance in determining programme success.