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Real world experience of generic substitution in Ireland – perspectives of pharmacists

In many countries the cost-effectiveness of drugs is receiving increasing attention. Rising budgets have heightened concerns about containing costs and whether resources are used efficiently. Branded or proprietary drugs, which have gone off-patent and have a generic equivalent available, will if prescribed and dispensed, use limited resources. Once these limited resources are deployed they are not then available for other activities that may bring greater benefits for patients. In other words, when resources are limited, giving one patient an expensive drug with no added value when cheaper alternatives exist, stops other patients getting treatments they need. Generic substitution is a process that promotes greater efficiencies in prescribing practice. Generic substitution, can be defined as dispensing an equivalent generic product containing the same drug when a branded medicine is prescribed. Since 2013, the process of generic substitution is permitted in Ireland. The aim of the current project is to ascertain the views of the pharmacists on the system of generic substitution, since the change in health policy was introduced.