ABPI Welcomes RCP Report, UK

Main Category: Pharmacy / Pharmacist
Article Date: 05 Feb 2009 - 2:00 PDT

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The Association of the British Pharmaceutical (ABPI) Industry welcomed publication of a report by the Royal College of Physicians which looks at relationships between patients, doctors, academics and the pharmaceutical industry.

Entitled 'Innovating for Health: Patients, physicians, the pharmaceutical industry and the NHS' and produced by a working party led by Dr Richard Horton, editor-in-chief of the Lancet, the report makes 42 recommendations aimed at a wide range of healthcare stakeholders.

Among the recommendations is a call for a UK medicines strategy to fulfil the unmet clinical need for prescription drugs and to remove inequalities in medicines provision - often referred to as 'postcode prescribing' - in Britain.

Dr Richard Tiner, medical director of the ABPI, said: "The RCP has taken a long, hard look at how doctors, academics and the pharmaceutical industry work together, with a specific focus on what is in the best interests of patients. It has come back with a powerful report which highlights how the views of the industry and NHS are fragmented and sets out concrete and constructive recommendations to get all sides pulling together.

"We welcome publication of the report, are grateful to have been asked to contribute to it and welcome the debate it ignites. We will consider all the recommendations very carefully and look forward to working the RCP and others to see how they can be progressed as we believe a strong, united NHS family is in everyone's best interests."

'Innovating for Health: Patients, physicians, the pharmaceutical industry and the NHS' is available in full from the RCP - http://www.rcplondon.ac.uk

ABPI

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