Healthcare professionals and policymakers at the World Health Professions Alliance (WHPA) are challenging counterfeit medicines by asking the public - Would you be able to tell a real medicine from a fake one?
Fake Medicines
The WHPA has released a video that exposes the extent of counterfeit medicines and the consequences of consuming them. The video is interactive and viewers are asked to choose between two products and are then shown their decision.
The video is intended to help protect people from substandard of falsified medicines and medical devices. It features three sets of animated measures that consumers, health professionals and policymakers can take to get rid of fake medicines.
Advice on how to make sure medicines bought online are real is offered to consumers and healthcare professionals are reminded of which features of medicines to inspect. Lastly the WHPA calls on policy makers to strengthen the laws against counterfeiting and to involve healthcare professionals in policy decisions.
Dr Frances Hughes, chief executive officer of the International Council of Nurses (ICN), spoke about the dangers of counterfeit medicines saying: “The consequences of counterfeit medicines include no cure, resistance to treatment, spread of disease, permanent injury and even death. We need to empower the public through general health literacy and ensure there is more nursing involvement in strategies.”
The project, led by the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) was intended to “give viewers the responsibility for what happens and, in doing so, to send home the message that there is a need to think twice about the choices they make” said chief executive officer of FIP, Luc Besançon.
“Patients expect support from health care professionals regarding counterfeit medicines. The project offers six simple measures to health care professionals for reducing the harm these products can cause,” said Mr Jonathon Kruger, chief executive officer of the World Confederation for Physical Therapy (WCPT).