THESE antibiotic compliance packs are priced 10 percent lower than leading generic brands, and up to 60 percent lower than leading name brands. PHOTO BY JIM GUIAO PUNZALAN
In the thick of jacked-up prices of consumer goods, Filipinos scrimp on anything within budget – even on medicines particularly the pricey antibiotics. This Filipino-style budgeting had caused alarm that health experts and the industry players look into ways to address the problem.
For its part, Watsons Pharmacy in cooperation with pharmaceutical firm Unilab, has developed the Antibiotic Compliance Pack to help patients and provide them more affordable antibiotics. The readily-accessible Antibiotic Compliance Packs consist of the most common antibiotics for common infections, such as respiratory tract infections, urinary tract infection and soft tissue infection. These medicines are created by Ritemed, a subsidiary of Unilab.
Antibiotics like amoxicillin, cefuroxime, co-amoxiclav and cefalexin are packed in quantities commonly prescribed by doctors and are also priced 10 percent lower than leading generic brands and up to 60 percent lower than leading name brands.
“This guarantees that every patient gets to complete his/her dosage to ensure total healing and wellness,” says Robert U. Sun, Watsons’ chief operating officer in a press launch held in Edsa Shangri-La in Mandaluyong City.
For instance, amoxicillin packs of 21 capsules are sold at P110 against innovator brands priced at P273. These Antibiotic Compliance Packs also include a product leaflet that features information about the superbug – a dreaded infection known to spread across continents of the world.
“There is no known cure for superbug infection, prevention is the only option we have when it comes to fighting the superbug. To ensure that patients stay healthy, antibiotic prescription and dosage compliance is key. Thus, Watsons Pharmacy has educated our pharmacists to be able to give consumers advice on the proper use of their prescribed antibiotics,” Sun furthers.
True to its thrust of delivering more access to healthcare, Watsons had successfully started with a medication compliance campaign for chronic illnesses such as diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol.
Campaign vs superbug
DR. SOLANTE, Watsons’ Lyle Joseph Morrell and lawyer Jose Ma Ochave of Unilab explain the danger of superbug during the press launch. PHOTO BY JIM GUIAO PUNZALAN
The superbug is a powerful bacteria that carries several resistance genes. To date it is not curable by any known medicines since it is resistant to the most commonly prescribed antibiotics, including carbapenems, the most powerful antibiotics created by medical science.
In a presentation, Dr. Rontgene Solante reveals that the superbug may be developed inside the human body when patients do not properly use antibiotics.
“While antibiotics are very effective in killing bacteria, proper use is crucial. When antibiotics are used in the wrong way, not all of the bacteria are killed-the surviving bacteria then have the chance to develop mutations that make them resistant to antibiotics,” says Solante, president of the Philippine Society for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases.
Antibiotic misuse usually starts with self-medication and includes taking the wrong type of antibiotics, skipping doses recommended by doctors or lessening the number of days of antibiotic ingestion when patients feel relief. Doing any of the above – antibiotic under dosage or over dosage – may only cause bacteria to mutate to become larger and more powerful and become the dreaded superbug. Widespread misuse of antibiotics in the Philippines, if not stopped, will eventually create new strains of superbugs that will have no cure.
Antibiotic Compliance Packs are exclusively available at Watsons Pharmacy outlets nationwide.