Category Archives: Media

Back on Track!

For quite a while a somewhat dormant condition has been applicable. Covid-19 certainly also played a roll.

But now: happy to announce that we are Back on Track!

In the near future we can tell more about exiting news!

 

Tokyo declaration on Patient Safety

On the 14th till 17th of April 2018 a high level meeting took place in Tokyo.

“The Tokyo Declaration on Patient Safety is founded on the policies articulated in World Health Assembly resolution WHA55.18 (2002), which urged Member States to “pay the closest possible attention to the problem of patient safety and establish and strengthen science-based systems, necessary for improving patient safety and the quality of health care”.

“Recognizing that patient safety is one of the most important components of health care delivery which is essential to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC), and moving towards UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs); and that patient safety systems and practices need to be established in all countries as one of the critical health care standards for achieving UHC on a sustainable basis;” 

GIMS wants to/can contribute through developing and implementing pharmaceutical IT-tools.

Whole text of Tokyo declaration:  Tokyo declaration

GIMS at EPN biennial forum in Kampala

The Ecumenical Pharmaceutical Network (wwe.epnetwork.org) is having it’s biennial forum in Kampala from 15-18 May this year.

The theme will be; ‘ Patient safety, Medication without Harm’.

GIMS foundation will be present and will contribute through a poster presentation and a scientific article about the ‘Gims Model for Screening and Rating of Medication Safety in a Country’.

WHO steps in as well!

WHO Launches Global Effort to Halve Medication-Related Errors in 5 Years

News release

WHO today launched a global initiative to reduce severe, avoidable medication-associated harm in all countries by 50% over the next 5 years.

The Global Patient Safety Challenge on Medication Safety aims to address the weaknesses in health systems that lead to medication errors and the severe harm that results. It lays out ways to improve the way medicines are prescribed, distributed and consumed, and increase awareness among patients about the risks associated with the improper use of medication.

Medication errors cause at least one death every day and injure approximately 1.3 million people annually in the United States of America alone. While low- and middle-income countries are estimated to have similar rates of medication-related adverse events to high-income countries, the impact is about twice as much in terms of the number of years of healthy life lost. Many countries lack good data, which will be gathered as part of the initiative.

Globally, the cost associated with medication errors has been estimated at US$ 42 billion annually or almost 1% of total global health expenditure.

“We all expect to be helped, not harmed, when we take medication,” said Dr Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General. “Apart from the human cost, medication errors place an enormous and unnecessary strain on health budgets. Preventing errors saves money and saves lives.”

Every person around the world will at some point in their life take medicines to prevent or treat illness. However, medicines do sometimes cause serious harm if taken incorrectly, monitored insufficiently or as the result of an error, accident or communication problems.

Both health workers and patients can make mistakes that result in severe harm, such as ordering, prescribing, dispensing, preparing, administering or consuming the wrong medication or the wrong dose at the wrong time. But all medication errors are potentially avoidable. Preventing errors and the harm that results requires putting systems and procedures in place to ensure the right patient receives the right medication at the right dose via the right route at the right time.

Medication errors can be caused by health worker fatigue, overcrowding, staff shortages, poor training and the wrong information being given to patients, among other reasons. Any one of these, or a combination, can affect the prescribing, dispensing, consumption, and monitoring of medications, which can result in severe harm, disability and even death.

Most harm arises from systems failures in the way care is organized and coordinated, especially when multiple health providers are involved in a patient’s care. An organizational culture that routinely implements best practices and that avoids blame when mistakes are made is the best environment for safe care.

The Challenge calls on countries to take early priority action to address these key factors: including medicines with a high risk of harm if used improperly; patients who take multiple medications for different diseases and conditions; and patients going through transitions of care, in order to reduce medication errors and harm to patients.

The actions planned in the Challenge will be focused on four areas: patients and the public; health care professionals; medicines as products; and systems and practices of medication. The Challenge aims to make improvements in each stage of the medication use process including prescribing, dispensing, administering, monitoring and use. WHO aims to provide guidance and develop strategies, plans and tools to ensure that the medication process has the safety of patients at its core, in all health care facilities.

“Over the years, I have spoken to many people who have lost loved ones to medication-related errors,” said Sir Liam Donaldson, WHO Envoy for Patient Safety. “Their stories, their quiet dignity and their acceptance of situations that should never have arisen have moved me deeply. It is to the memories of all those who have died due to incidents of unsafe care that this Challenge should be dedicated.”

This challenge is WHO’s third global patient safety challenge, following the Clean Care is Safe Care challenge on hand hygiene in 2005 and the Safe Surgery Saves Lives challenge in 2008.

Chicago area; 52% of dangerous drug interactions were missed

The Chicago Tribune published on the 15th December 2016 a great piece of investigative journalism which took 2 years to perform.

The result is vastly shocking; out of the 255 selected pharmacies (big chains aswell as independent pharmacies) a staggering 52% did NOT mention the potential serious interactions to the patients.

For the full article use the link underneath.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/watchdog/druginteractions/ct-drug-interactions-pharmacy-met-20161214-story.html

At GIMS foundation we argue; if even in a High Income country like the USA such a bad result is obtained, what would the situation be in Low- & Middle Income countries….

That is why in these countries the improvements on the ‘Acces to medication-theme’ should be accompagnied by Medication Safety measures!

 

High national media attention

Due to the release of the Dutch translation of his book ‘Deadly Medicines and Organised Crime’ a lot of media attention was generated for Peter C. Gøtzsche in these last two weeks.

All major Dutch national newspapers reported about it extensively and a television item on the subject was broadcasted.

It has to be seen wether this media attention peak will materialize in deep further discussion and possible (health care policy and regulatory) consequences.

Peter C. Gøtzsche at Leiden University Medical Center

On the 11th of November Peter C. Gøtzsche held a presentation at the Leiden University Medical Center in The Netherlands because of the recent Dutch translation of his famous book ‘Deadly Medicines and Organised Crime’.

Again he was able to reach out to an interested audience. Off course GIMS was present aswell.

In diverse national Dutch newspapers also broad attention was given to the theme and Peter’s vision.

 

 

Interview on GIMS in Dutch Pharmaceutical Weekly, July 2015

By Pharmaceutical Weekly journalist: Frans van den Houdt. (PW 30/31, 24-07-2015)

“Industrie medeverantwoordelijk voor medicatieveiligheid’

“Om medicatieveiligheid te bevorderen moet je je op de hele keten in een ontwikkelingsland richten, alle betrokken partijen erbij betrekken en verantwoordelijk maken, van apotheken tot groothandelaren, van industrie tot overheid”, zegt Richard van Slobbe, apotheker, bestuurslid van Farmacie Mondiaal en medeoprichter van de stichting GIMS (The Global Initiative on Medication Safety foundation). “Dat is de enige manier om vooruitgang te boeken.”

gims is voortgekomen uit een Stichting Farmacie Mondiaal-activiteit in Rwanda en opereert sinds eind 2014 als zelfstandige stichting. “De focus in Rwanda lag aanvankelijk op een ict-project in de farmaceutische sector, maar na verloop van tijd kwamen we tot het inzicht dat als je echt voor de veiligheid van patiënten wilt zorgen, je het veel breder moet aanpakken”, aldus Van Slobbe. Zijn stichting werkt daarvoor nauw samen met de farmacie-opleidingen van Utrecht en Groningen; twee uu-studenten schrijven hun BSc-scriptie over het werk van gims en een rug-student gaat er zijn MSc-scriptie aan wijden.

In Rwanda zijn goede medicijnen beschikbaar, maar toch gaan veel mensen eraan dood. “Dan kun je niet anders dan concluderen dat ergens iets niet goed gaat. Apotheken verstrekken alleen maar geneesmiddelen, met doseringsadviezen, interacties, dubbelmedicaties en contra-indicaties houden ze zich niet bezig. Veel middelen worden daarom verkeerd gebruikt, met de dood tot gevolg.“ Harde cijfers heeft hij niet. Van Slobbe: “Maar als een land als Nederland met een goed ict-systeem al twintigduizend vermijdbare ziekenhuisopnamen per jaar kent, dan kun je op je klompen aanvoelen dat het aantal slachtoffers in een ontwikkelingsland als Rwanda groot is”

Van Slobbe beschouwt Rwanda als een geschikt land om dit probleem te lijf te gaan, omdat het in zijn ogen een deugdelijk bestuur en een professionele, behoorlijk functionerende beroepsgroep kent die graag willen meewerken. “Ze zijn heel open en willen graag leren van andere landen.” Die steun zoekt gims nu ook bij de industrie. “Fabrikanten moeten zich medeverantwoordelijk gaan voelen voor verkeerd medicijngebruik. Wij gaan met Nefarma om de tafel om te zien welke rol de industrie kan spelen.” Tegelijkertijd richt de stichting zich op fondsenwerving en sponsoring. “Het is nu vooral liefdewerk oud papier.”

Van Slobbe spreekt over een “enorme drive” als zijn persoonlijke inzet voor gims ter sprake komt. “In Nederland is de apotheek doodgereguleerd, het wordt steeds moeilijker vakinhoudelijk bezig te zijn. In het buitenland kan ik met mijn expertise en relatief bescheiden middelen iets wezenlijks toevoegen aan het vak van apotheker.”

Global Initiative on Medication Safety Foundation (GIMS)

Welcome on the website of The Global Initiative on Medication Safety Foundation (GIMS). The site has gone live on the 18th of May 2015 and will be constantly updated the coming period.

GIMS’s main objective:
Minimize health risks originated by the global use of medicine.

GIMS’s proposal to initiate and create a higher level of Medication Safety:
To minimize the health risks originated bij the global use of medicine, GIMS aims at creating awareness and responsibility in de medical chain, health care governance and patients worldwide.
GIMS focuses on supporting responsible parties in the medical chain and health care governance to improve the level of professionalism of the processes and structures of prescribing and dispensing of medicine and guidance of patients in the use of medicine.