Biomedical subjects

S L Rubak

Publications and source records attributed to S L Rubak.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2000

[How do patients evaluate the newly introduced system of substituting prescriptions?].

In 1997 a new prescription system was introduced in Denmark. The pharmacist must now substitute the prescribed drug with a cheaper version either by a generic prescription (G-substitution) or by an original prescription (O-substitution) unless the prescribing doctor indicates that substitution is not allowed in the specific case. The purpose of this study was to obtain the patients' view on the new prescription system and to identify any related problems. The investigation was based on structured interviews. The interview guide was designed as a questionnaire, which was validated and tested before use. The response rate was 82%. The study showed that 84% of the patients were satisfied with the system and 85% of the patients thought that it should continue. Eighty-three percent of the patients had tried another version of the substituted medicine earlier. Out of these, 6% had experienced more side-effects from the substituted medicine, and 10% felt that the substituted medicine had a weaker effect. There was one case of erroneous medical treatment as a consequence of the substitution system. Only few problems such as more side-effects or less effect of the substituted medicine was experienced by the patients. It can be concluded that the patients in general are satisfied with the new prescription system.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

[How do practitioners evaluate the newly introduced system of substituting prescriptions?].

AIMS: In 1997 a new prescription system was introduced in the Danish health care system. The pharmacist must now substitute a prescribed drug with a cheaper version, either generic (G-substitution) or original (O-substitution) unless the general practitioner (GP) indicates that substitution is not allowed. The purpose of this study was to obtain the GPs' views on the system and evaluate the problems related to the system. METHODS: The study was based on questionnaires to GPs developed via qualitative interviews with the GPs and afterwards pilot tested. RESULTS: Out of 300 GPs the response rate was 80%. The study showed that 61% of the GPs were dissatisfied with the system and thought that it should be removed. There were several reasons for this: the system was incomprehensible, the introduction and information about the system was insufficient and the extra workload was too heavy. All the GPs agreed that analogue substitution (substitution between drugs with the same effect obtained by different means) was medically unjustifiable and should not be introduced.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

[How do pharmacists evaluate the newly introduced system of substituting prescriptions?].

In 1997 a new prescription system was introduced in the Danish health care system. The pharmacist must now substitute a prescription with a cheaper version of the drug (either generic or original) unless the prescribing doctor indicates that substitution is not allowed in the specific case. The purpose of this study was to evaluate problems of the system and obtain the pharmacists' views on the system. The study was based on questionnaires to a representative sample of 75 pharmacists (a quarter of Denmark's pharmacists). The response rate was 72%. Half of the pharmacists were dissatisfied with the system, which primarily was due to the excessive workload imposed. In spite of this, about half the pharmacists wanted the system to be continued, because the overall purpose of finding the cheapest drug for the patient is good. Nearly all pharmacists thought that analogue substitution (substitution between drugs with the same overall effects but obtained by different means) should not be introduced.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

[Communication between general practitioners and hospitals].

The study was partly based on a retrospective analysis of 408 hospital referrals and 261 discharge summary letters and partly on interviews with chief physicians/surgeons and general practitioners. The level of information in hospital referrals: patient history 87%, objective findings 94%, social medicine 31%, plan/expectations 21%. The diagnostic applicability of patient history/objective findings was 95% and social medicine 70%. The discharge summary letter was received 2-3 days after hospital discharge in 17% cases. In the discharge letters information about medication was described in 41%, information given to patient/relatives in 9%. When discharge summary letters from departments of internal medicine and surgery were compared the level of informations from departments of internal medicine to departments of surgery was superior e.g. descriptions of medication (62% against 26%), date of control (34% against 24%) and information to patient/relatives (12% against 5%). The conclusion was that the level of information and the diagnostic applicability showed variation with regard to quality. General practitioners and hospitals must develop guidelines for hospital referrals and discharge summary letters in order to improve the patient's course.

Communication↗