title: The prescribing of generic medicines in Nigeria: knowledge, perceptions and attitudes of physicians.
abstract: Generic medicines have the same efficacy and safety as originators at lower prices; however, there are concerns with their utilization in Nigeria. Objective was to evaluate physicians' understanding and perception of generics. A questionnaire was administered among physicians working in tertiary healthcare facilities in four geo-political regions of Nigeria. Questionnaire response was 74.3% (191/257) among mainly males (85.9%). The mean knowledge score regarding generics was 5.3 (maximum of 9) with 36.6%, 36.1% and 27.2% having poor, average and good knowledge respectively. Cross-tabulation showed statistical significance (p = 0.047) with the duration of practice but not with position, subspecialty or sex. The majority of respondents did not believe that generic medicines are of lower quality than branded medicines. Therapeutic failure was a major concern in 82.7%, potentially discouraging the prescribing of generics, and a majority (63.9%) did not support generic substitution by pharmacists. Knowledge gaps were identified especially with the perception of generics, which need to be addressed.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Pharmacology , Ekiti State University , Ado-Ekiti , Nigeria.
authors.forename: Joseph O
authors.initials: JO
authors.lastname: Fadare
authors.affiliation: b Department of Medicine , Ekiti State University , Ado-Ekiti , Nigeria.
authors.forename: Adekunle O
authors.initials: AO
authors.lastname: Adeoti
authors.affiliation: c Department of Medicine , University of Ilorin , Ilorin , Nigeria.
authors.forename: Olufemi O
authors.initials: OO
authors.lastname: Desalu
authors.affiliation: d Department of Medicine , Imo State University , Orlu , Imo State , Nigeria.
authors.forename: Okezie O
authors.initials: OO
authors.lastname: Enwere
authors.affiliation: e Department of Medicine , Usman Danfodiyo University , Sokoto , Nigeria.
authors.forename: Aliyu M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Makusidi
authors.affiliation: f Clinical Pharmacology Unit, Department of Medicine , Lagos State University Teaching Hospital , Ikeja , Lagos , Nigeria.|g Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics , Lagos State University College of Medicine , Ikeja , Lagos , Nigeria.
authors.forename: Olayinka
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Ogunleye
authors.affiliation: h Department of Medicine , Federal Medical Centre , Owo , Nigeria.
authors.forename: Taofiki A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Sunmonu
authors.affiliation: i Drug Utilization Research Unit (DURU), Department of Pharmacy , Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University , Port Elizabeth 6031 , South Africa.
authors.forename: Ilse
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Truter
authors.affiliation: j Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics , University of Ibadan, Ibadan , Nigeria.
authors.forename: Onyinye O
authors.initials: OO
authors.lastname: Akunne
authors.affiliation: k Department of Laboratory Medicine, Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Karolinska Institutet , Karolinska University Hospital Huddinge , SE-141 86 , Stockholm , Sweden.|l Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences , University of Strathclyde , Glasgow , UK.
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Godman
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D057915:Drug Substitution / Q000523:psychology; D016568:Drugs, Generic / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009549:Nigeria; D010465:Perception; D010595:Pharmacists / Q000458:organization & administration; D010820:Physicians / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D024382:Professional Role; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D016568:Drugs, Generic
keywords: Generics; Nigeria; generic substitution; physicians’ knowledge and attitudes; prescribing