The Perception of Therapeutic Equivalence in Pharmacists in Chile: Diagnosis and proposals to advance towards interchangeability

Abstract

Pharmaceuticals play a fundamental role in the prevention, diagnosis, attenuation, treatment or cure of diseases or their symptoms in every health system. One of the barriers to access to them is price, where bioequivalence and interchangeability are tools that contribute to competitive market. Through a survey carried out among dispensers, it was possible to identify the perception regarding bioequivalence and the National Health Authority, finding inconsistencies in some aspects, however, a good perception prevailed over interchangeability. Our country is on the way to being a mature system in terms of bioequivalence and to be able to aim for interchangeability, however efforts are required to consolidate concepts in the prescribing professionals, dispensers and citizens, together with a follow-up of this public policy. In this line, it is proposed to continue with the instrument proposed in a cohort, and ideally in other Latin American latitudes, to understand more complex intrinsic phenomena such as perception and other social dynamics.