Titre :
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Improving the use of pharmaceuticals through patient and community level interventions. (2001)
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Auteurs :
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Nuria HOMEDES ;
Antonio UGALDE
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Type de document :
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Article
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Dans :
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Social science and medicine (vol. 52, n° 1, 2001)
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Pagination :
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99-134
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Langues:
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Anglais
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Mots-clés :
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Médicament
;
Utilisation
;
Programme santé
;
Homme
;
Pays voie développement
;
Education santé
|
Résumé :
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[BDSP. Notice produite par INIST DgR0xu46. Diffusion soumise à autorisation]. Pharmaceuticals represent an increasing share of private and public health care expenditures. However, while most governments are interested in ensuring availability and access to drugs, the issue of adequate use of drugs remains a low priority in most third world countries. This paper summarizes the results of interventions conducted in developing countries aimed at improving patients'compliance with the advice of health professionals and/or to decrease the unnecessary use of drugs by the general population. Forty-five studies were identified through literature searches and networking ; and only about a third of them fulfilled the eligibility criteria for inclusion in the review. Given the paucity of information available and the importance of the topic the authors report on all 45 studies identified. Although much remains to be explored there are several interventions that deserve to be highlighted. The authors argue that improving the use of pharmaceuticals through interventions directed only to consumers may have a small impact and suggest that in order to obtain meaningful changes it might be necessary to design interventions to modify the behavior of all the actors in the medication cycle (manufacturers, health professionals, retailers, consumers and governments). (...)
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