GENERICS
GENERIC MEDICINES SAVE THE NHS BILLIONS OF POUNDS EACH YEAR. IN FACT, IT’S ESTIMATED THAT THE FIGURE IS IN THE REGION OF £13 BILLION: A WELCOME CONTRIBUTION TO A HEALTHCARE BUDGET THAT IS STRETCHED TO ITS LIMITS. BUT WHAT EXACTLY ARE GENERICS?
GENERICS I
n today’s healthcare, medicines will often have two names: the ‘generic’ name and the ‘brand’ name. The generic name is the key or active ingredient of the medicines, while the brand name is the name given to the medicine by the manufacturer.
BRANDED/INNOVATIVE MEDICINES
When pharmaceutical companies manufacture new medicines, these often come about through the research and development of a new chemical molecule. The company will have invested a lot of time – often years – and money into the development of this new medicine, which is referred to as a branded or innovative medicine.
Once a company has produced a new medicine, it applies for sole exclusive rights, which, if granted, will usually last for about fifteen to twenty years. During the sole exclusive rights period, the company will get regulatory approval for the medicine and will then produce and sell it. In many cases, the brand name of the original medicine will also be protected as a trade mark and can therefore not be used by anyone else.
These new medicines will be known by both their generic name – which refers to the active or key ingredient, and also by their brand name, which will be the name under which the developer will market and sell it.
Pharmaceutical companies will often opt for brand names that are easy for both patients and healthcare professionals to recognise and pronounce, with the brand name often beginning with a capital letter. The generic name, meanwhile, will generally have a more scientific
sounding name and won’t have a capital letter.
Let’s take ‘diazepam’ as an example. Diazepam is the chemical or generic name of a sedative drug. While some companies will market it under its generic name – diazepam – others will give it a brand name such as Valium or Vazepam.
During the exclusive rights period, other companies may research the medicine and produce their own version of it. Since they are effectively replicating something that is already in existence, they do not have to spend the same amount of time or money as the original developer in producing the medicine and so the cost of the medicine is considerably lower than the original.
When the exclusive rights period ends, the medicine can then be produced and sold by other companies under a different brand name, or under its generic name, once regulatory approval is obtained.
QUALITY/EFFICACY
The generic medicine companies must, of course, stay within the regulatory health authority guidelines, which apply in the countries where the medicine is going to be produced and sold.
Generics have the same strength and dosage as the brand-name drug. They’re developed with the same standards, and are just as safe and effective.
Generally, a generic drug will be approved as long as it:
• Contains the same active ingredients as the brand-name drug
• Treats the same medical condition
• Is identical in strength, purity, quality, dosage form and method by which someone takes the drug
• Absorbs into the bloodstream at a similar rate as the brand-name medicine
DIFFICULTIES WITH GENERICS
While most pharmacy contractors try to encourage their local GPs to prescribe generic medicines in order to keep NHS costs down, the downside is that this can cause some problems for some patients – the elderly in particular.
If GPs repeatedly prescribe the cheapest generic form of a drug, the chances are that it will frequently change shape, size and, in many
cases, colour. Many patients – but particularly the elderly - find these changes difficult to deal with.
Continually changing brands can create confusion for patients and can totally undermine their confidence in their medication. In addition to the problems caused by their inability to recognise their ‘regular’ medicine, there is a safety issue in that they may either confuse a medicine and take the incorrect dosage, or may not take the medicine at all. The frequent changes in prescribing can therefore potentially be detrimental to patient care. •
ECLIPSE GENERICS – COMMITTED TO SUPPORTING INDEPENDENT COMMUNITY PHARMACIES IN SCOTLAND.
At Eclipse Generics, our philosophy is simple; we employ local people, with local knowledge, with a passion to deliver unrivalled value and service to local Scottish independent community pharmacies.
At the best price and constantly growing, we offer a full line range of generics and an industry leading range of parallel imports, ethicals, dressings, feeds, OTCs, dispensary consumables and veterinary products. This is in addition to bespoke specials manufactured and sourced to meet the individual needs of patients.
We are customer centric and each of our customers has a dedicated Telesales Executive and field-based Territory Manager in order to provide us with the autonomy and flexibility to tailor our service based on the individual needs of each customer.
Situated in East Kilbride, Eclipse Generics is an integral part of the DE Group. The DE Group is the UK’s leading independent pharmaceutical wholesaler. Going from strength to strength, and with its strong market heritage, the DE Group has long- standing trading relationships with the world’s leading pharmaceutical manufacturers and its collective strength in the industry ensures that we can offer our customers the best range of products at competitive prices.
Contact Details: Eclipse Generics, Unit 1, Langlands Place, Kelvin South Business Park, East Kilbride, Scotland, G75 0YF
Freephone: 0800 328 7169 Freefax: 0800 298 8793
www.de-group.co.uk
SCOTTISH PHARMACIST - 19
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