Integrating Global and National Knowledge to Select Medicines for Children: The Ghana National Drugs Programme
Abstract
This paper reports the experience of the Ghana National Drugs Programme as they reviewed the international evidence base for five priority paediatric medicines: oral zinc sulphate for acute diarrhoea, injectable artesunate for severe malaria, topical chlorhexidine for preventing neonatal cord sepsis, dispersible oral amoxicillin for community acquired pneumonia, and oral and injectable caffeine citrate for neonatal apnoea
Applying the global recommendations to Ghana was not straightforward for any of the five medicines, regardless of the presence of high quality evidence of important clinical benefits.
Four main factors generated debate and uncertainty in the committee: (1) effect unproven in African settings; (2) control group in trials not consistent with current practice; (3) little evidence on cost and cost effectiveness; and (4) limited supply chain.
This project demonstrates why global recommendations should be presented alongside transparent descriptions of the evidence base, allowing policy groups to identify where, when, and how the interventions have been evaluated, and any factors limiting applicability.
As many policy questions are relevant across sub-Saharan Africa, and policy makers are likely to encounter similar problems, we encourage regional collaboration on health technology assessment, and sharing of information and resources.
Citation
Sinclair, D.; Gyansa-Lutterodt, M.; Asare, B.; Koduah, A.; Andrews, E.; Garner, P. Integrating Global and National Knowledge to Select Medicines for Children: The Ghana National Drugs Programme. PLoS Medicine (2013) 10 (5) e1001449. [DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1001449]