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Insufficient access to oral paediatric medicines in Ghana: A descriptive study

Daniel N A Ankrah1,2, Joseph T Turkson3, Edith B Boateng4

  • 1Division of Pharmacoepidemiology & Clinical Pharmacology, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences (UIPS), Utrecht, The Netherlands. D.Ankrah@uu.nl.

BMC Health Services Research
|June 19, 2016
PubMed

Insights

This study found that many commonly prescribed pediatric medicines are unavailable in Ghana, requiring extemporaneous preparation. Some of these essential children's medicines lacked WHO approval or local registration, highlighting safety concerns.

Area of Science:

  • Pharmacology
  • Paediatric Medicine
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Children face significant healthcare access challenges, particularly concerning medication availability.
  • Off-label prescription of pediatric medicines can lead to serious safety issues.
  • This study focuses on frequently prescribed children's medicines that are not readily available in Ghana and are prepared extemporaneously.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify frequently prescribed pediatric medicines that require extemporaneous preparation in Ghana.
  • To assess the availability and regulatory status of these essential children's medicines.
  • To highlight potential safety concerns associated with unlisted or unregistered pediatric medications.

Main Methods:

  • Prescriptions for extemporaneous oral preparations for children at Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital were analyzed (November 2013 onwards).
  • Data collected included medicine name, dosage, and prescribing facility.
  • Medicines were cross-referenced with the World Health Organization Children's Medicine List and registered with the Food and Drugs Authority, Ghana.

Main Results:

  • A total of 622 prescriptions for 35 different pediatric formulations were processed.
  • Some prescribed medicines (e.g., Baclofen, Clonazepam) were not on the WHO Children's Medicine List or registered in Ghana.
  • The majority of prescribed medicines (88.6%) were for non-communicable diseases.

Conclusions:

  • Pediatric prescriptions, including off-label medications, are frequently prepared extemporaneously in Ghana.
  • Urgent measures are needed to improve access to essential pediatric medicines.
  • Enhanced monitoring of benefit-risk profiles for pediatric medicines is crucial for better treatment outcomes in children.
Abstract

Keywords:
Extemporaneous formulationGhanaOff-label usePaediatric medicines

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