Assessing the overuse of medicines

Atuação profissional dos farmacêuticos no Brasil: perfil sociodemográfico e dinâmica de trabalho em farmácias e drogarias privadas

“…Isso significou uma reestruturação na profissão do farmacêutico, que passou a atuar como empregado dessas empresas ou preferiu se dedicar a outras atividades, como análises clínicas e produção de medicamentos, distanciando-se de seu histórico papel de profissional de saúde e educador (Vieira, 2007, p. 215). Tal distanciamento pode significar mais um desafio para a efetivação do uso racional de medicamentos e contribuir para o uso indiscriminado dos mesmos, como aponta o fenômeno denominado "farmaceuticalização" da sociedade (Busfield, 2015;Esher;Coutinho, 2017;Williams;Martin;Gabe, 2011).…”

Uso racional de medicamentos, farmaceuticalização e usos do metilfenidato

“…The outreach and popularity of a medication is not only based on its capacity to achieve an ef- fect, but on its interaction with cultural and social pressures that define a condition as worthy of pharmaceutical resolution 20,23 . Busfield 4 suggests a typology that considers five types of inappropriate use: a) not receiving medicines that are clinically necessary (benefits would compensate for the risks); b) receiving/ using medicines that are not efficient for the condition being treated (risks exceed benefits); c) receiving/using medicines with no appropriate clinical need (risks exceed any benefits); d) receiving/using a specific medicine, but in wrong doses or schedules or in combination with another incorrectly prescribed medicine (which would change the risk-benefit equation); e) receiving/ using expensive medicines, while there would be an equally efficient and cheaper alternative.…”

“…Considering the originality of the subject and the implicit conflict between practices of rational use of medicines and the effects of pharmaceuticalization, there were only three articles found, two under the combination "pharmaceuticalization" OR "pharmaceuticalisation" AND "rational use of medicines" in the Virtual Health Library (BVS) 4 and Scielo 17 and another one under "pharmaceuticalization" OR "pharmaceuticalisation" AND "methylphenidate" on PubMed-Medline and Scopus 18 . There was a new attempt made under the same bases, using the terms "pharmaceuticalization" OR "pharmaceuticalisation" AND "cognitive enhancement" which also resulted in one article 19 .…”

“…According to Busfield 4 , such growth is well acknowledged and may be seen as a clear evidence of a phenomenon called 'pharmaceuticalization' . Pharmaceuticalization can be defined as the translation of the transformation of human conditions, resources and capacities into opportunities for pharmaceutical interventio 5 .…”

“Too much medicine”: Insights and explanations from economic theory and research

“…This concept has also been related to situations in which medicine use ceases to be rational, fails to confer benefits and/or risks harms without concomitant benefits (Busfield 2015), noting the growing importance of pharmaceuticalisation as medications are increasingly used preventively in broad populations, not just in the sick. Pharmaceuticalisation is clearly a cousin of "overmedicalisation", most famously propounded in the 1970s by Ivan Illich (Illich 1976).…”