E-DRUG: Information on clinical guidelines (3)
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In developing countries the rationale for clinical guidelines applies as
described by Mary Hemming. In addition standard clinical or treatment
guidelines based on a national essential medicines list are crucial to address
issues associated wih safety, affordability, access and necessity.
To prepare clinical or treatment guidelines
- disease patterns are analysed
- consideration is given to how the common conditions should be treated in
your setting
- essential medicines are aimed at the best treatment for most of the people
Ideally, treatment guidelines should be prepared first and the medicines needed
will be determined during the process. It is possible to work through the
process of disease management from the base level of the health services,
through the various referral levels. Treatment guidelines and lists of drugs
can be designed for different levels of programs resulting in uniform or
complementary treatment by doctors, health workers and nurses.
- The use of guidlines associated with a basic list is not only the most
efficient way to use the money that is available, it also provides safe and
reliable treatment, and appropriate drugs will always be available;
- It is a guarantee that products are excluded which haven't been properly
evaluated, or are known to be quite dangerous, or which have nothing to do with
the needs of the population; it also excludes inappropriate drugs that could be
made available by donation;
- Apart from helping to stop the waste of money on unnecessary drugs or on
drugs that are more expensive than equally effective ones, it also makes the
recording, storage and distribution much easier.
Beverley Snell
Centre for International Health
Macfarlane Burnet Institute for Medical Research and Public Health
P O Box 2284 Melbourne 8001, Australia
Telephone 61 3 9282 2115
Fax 61 3 9282 2144
email <bev@burnet.edu.au>
Site address: 85 Commercial Road, Melbourne, 3004
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