Doctors told to use generic drug names

A Ministry of Health official has advised doctors to write the generic names of drugs instead of the trade names on prescriptions to offset any bias.

Gulf News found that doctors tend to write the trade names of drugs as a result of massive lobbying by pharmaceutical giants.

Dr Juma Billal, Head of the Preventive Medicine Department at the Ministry of Health in Dubai, stressed that it is unethical for doctors to write the trade names of medicines on prescriptions.

A member of the Society of Consumer Protection, Dr Billal noted that if the prescriptions give the generic name, patients have a choice which brand to buy.

It should be left to the pharmacist, which brand to suggest.

According to Dr Billal, companies in the UAE can import medicines as long as they are registered at the Ministry.

"The large pharmaceutical firms object to the import of medicine with generic names to the UAE," he added.

These companies influence doctors with their large marketing campaigns, and allegedly throw lavish parties and give "freebies" in order to have their particular drugs prescribed.

The consumer is the loser in the end, said the doctor. If the prescription cites the generic name, the patients can choose the brand of the drug they want, perhaps at a lesser cost.

There are some countries which allow the import of drugs with generic names, and this is generally much cheaper for the consumer, he said.

"All drugs are the same no matter which company manufactures them. But the cost can vary, for example, one company sells a given medicine for Dh100, while another company sells it for Dh30," he said.

There is no such thing as one medicine is better or more effective than the other, he stressed.
"The ingredients and the machines which make them are the same, whether in India or in the U.S."

Dr T. P. Ray, Chief Executive Officer and Medical Director of Welcare Hospital, said that there are two ways to name drugs.

One is the generic name, while the other is the trade name.

"Trade names are given by pharmaceutical firms to make it easier for doctors to remember them. Doctors, in general, tend to use trade names because they have an idea that one company is larger or that the quality of its medicine is better. But frankly speaking, it is much better to use generic names," he said.

The same drug is manufactured by many companies, he added.

"Since doctors are continuously approached by pharmaceutical companies, they tend to use the trade names they are familiar with," he said.

Dr Ray added that if the quality and the price of the drug is in the same price range, there is no problem.

"But if the quality and the price of the medicine fluctuate, then the pharmacy is trying to make more profit," he explained.

A pharmacist who did not want to be named, noted that most of the patients come with prescriptions with trade names.

"This is not good, because if sometimes when we are short of that particular brand, people don't want any alternative," he lamented.