Open AccessPerspectives of patients and consumers on the use of generic medicines
Author(s) -
Natalia Celedón,
Cristián González,
Cristóbal Cuadrado
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
medwave
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.178
H-Index - 7
ISSN - 0717-6384
DOI - 10.5867/medwave.2021.11.8155
Subject(s) - medicine , systematic review , medline , alternative medicine , randomized controlled trial , family medicine , adverse effect , surgery , pharmacology , pathology , political science , law
Access to medicines constitutes a public health challenge worldwide. Promoting utilization of generic medicines is one of the strategies that has been proposed to optimize pharmaceutical spending and thus allow greater coverage. However, its use is not yet widespread enough. This study seeks to explore the perspectives and acceptability to the use of generic medicines from patients and consumers. METHODS We searched in Epistemonikos, the largest database of systematic reviews in health, which is maintained by screening multiple information sources, including MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane, among others. We extracted data from the systematic reviews, reanalyzed data of primary studies, conducted a evidence synthesis and generated a summary of findings table using the GRADE approach. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS We identified four systematic reviews that together include 47 primary studies, of which one corresponds to a randomized trial. A low rate of patients or consumers has a negative perception regarding generic medicines, including dimensions such as risk, quality, safety, risk of adverse effects, among others.