Prevent antimicrobial resistance: 'Maging masunurin'

You don’t feel well so you go to a doctor and she prescribes antibiotics. After a couple of days, you decide you’re completely cured and you stop taking them. You feel fine, so why continue?

Or maybe the antibiotics are expensive, so you take only half the prescribed dosage. It can’t hurt to save your money, no?

Or you want to be back at work immediately, so you ask your doctor to prescribe a larger dose of antibiotics. The more drugs you take, the faster the cure, right?

Wrong, wrong, and wrong. This is the sort of cavalier attitude towards doctors’ prescriptions that leads to the problem of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). What it means is that the patient who needs the antibiotics to combat infection no longer responds to the antibiotics. She/he has developed a resistance to the antibiotics. If the antibiotics cannot do their work, the infection worsens, and the results can be fatal.

According to Dr. Armando Crisostomo, chairman of the Philippine Alliance for Patient Safety, AMR can result from a wrong prescription, or the underutilization or overprescription of an antibiotic. This leads to the patient’s infection becoming resistant to the standard antibiotics that used to be effective against it.

“AMR can be caused by the underutilization of antibiotics — for example, a doctor gives the correct antibiotic, but in a dose that is too low. Or it could be that a doctor gives the correct dosage, but because the drug is expensive, the patient can’t afford to buy the number of medicines required. In some cases, the patient discontinues his drug treatment when he feels better or when the symptoms are no longer present.”

Overuse of prescribed antibiotics is another factor in the development of antimicrobial resistance. “Sometimes doctors tend to overprescribe drugs because they want to make sure that all bacteria are eliminated. So this is the reason why AMR contributes to healthcare-associated or hospital-acquired infections.”

Studies worldwide report that one out of 10 patients who get admitted into our healthcare system for treatment, whether on an in-patient or out-patient basis, is potentially in danger of suffering from an adverse (or undesirable) event. One of the most common adverse events is the development of healthcare-associated infection due to AMR. Most of these cases are minor, and only a few of them will result in serious complications. “But still, one of every 10 patients is a staggering figure,” Dr. Crisostomo notes.

Combating the dreaded AMR and ensuring patient safety will require educating doctors, nurses, and health care professionals as well as the patients themselves. “Doctors have to be at the forefront of promoting antimicrobial resistance awareness. As an organization, the Philippine Alliance for Patient Safety believes that we have to develop a stronger national policy, stronger patient surveillance, and implement strict monitoring of how antibiotics are being prescribed.”

Dr. Armando Crisostomo, chairman of the Philippine Alliance for Patient Safety

Pharex HealthCorp, the country’s leading brand of generic medicines, is doing its share to fight antimicrobial resistance with its Masunurin Advocacy Program. With its simple but memorable slogan “Maging Masunurin,” Pharex is addressing the root cause of AMR, which is the inappropriate use of antibiotics.

Dr. Crisostomo notes that Pharex’s Masunurin campaign is an effective means to educate doctors and patients on the danger of not following medical prescriptions. “It enforces the importance of compliance. But ensuring compliance also requires ensuring affordability for patients, because that’s the biggest problem that we have in the country today.”

It is a sad fact that economics is the major factor in non-compliance: many Filipinos simply cannot afford to take the required antibiotics in the correct doses. In response to this problem, Pharex has launched Masunurin Value Pack or Pharex MVP. The company’s first-line antibiotics Amoxicillin, Cefalexin, Ciprofloxacin and Cloxacillin have been re-packaged in a specially-designed foil pack that is more affordable and convenient for patients, making adherence to antimicrobial therapy less problematic. Patients are more likely to follow medical prescriptions to the letter if they’re not worried about the costs. Each Pharex MVP is a complete five-day treatment program for mild to moderate infections.

The Pharex MVP’s new, resealable foil packaging with Zip-lock is the first of its kind in the country. This innovative packaging preserves the quality of the Pharex antibiotics while making it more convenient for patients to carry their medications wherever they go. Pharex MVP is 25 to 50-percent lower than Pharex’s regularly packaged products, which are already 20 to 30 percent lower than branded counterparts, so patients can more easily afford to buy the full dosage as prescribed.

“As a pioneer in uni-branded medicines, Pharex has always placed the well-being of the Filipino patient first and foremost. Our goal is to provide the best healthcare while making it affordable,” says Tomas Marcelo Agana III, president and CEO of Pharex HealthCorp.

“The Masunurin campaign is a testament to Pharex’s unwavering dedication to protecting the health of our customers. It embodies our concrete commitment to support the battle against antimicrobial resistance.”

Abe Sia, Pharex corporate equity manager; Eric Lim, Pharex corporate relations manager; Dr. Armando Crisostomo; and Gladys Pangilinan, Pharex national sales manager

Educating patients on the availability of high-quality generic medicines like Pharex MVP is important, Dr. Crisostomo agrees. “The Masunurin Value Pack not only ensures compliance but makes it affordable. This addresses the issue of greater access to quality healthcare for patients.”

Educating doctors and patients is the first step to patient safety, Dr. Crisostomo declares. “We have to develop a ‘Safe Culture’ in order to achieve patient safety. We should recognize the importance of educating our doctors and most especially our patients because they have the right to know everything there is to know about their condition and its corresponding treatment. By educating them, we are empowering them.”