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Understand patients when considering brands vs. generics, speaker says
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ATLANTA – Because patients’ individual needs and wants vary, doctors need to be well educated on both branded products and generics so they can tailor treatment, according to a lecturer here at SECO.
"Ophthalmic generics have the same active ingredients as brands," Leo P. Semes, OD, said. "If we use the example of latanoprost 0.005%, that means that 0.005% of any generic product is going to be the same. What that then means, though, is that the other 99.995% is going to be different."
Leo P. Semes
Doctors need to have a good understanding of what they are directing the patient to take and then what the patient is actually taking, Semes said.
"If a patient goes on a generic because of pharmacy substitution, then we should ask the patient to bring the bottles into the office, because how do we know what the patient is actually taking?" he said.
Semes went on to compare the question of brands vs. generics to Coca-Cola and some of its "brand X" counterparts, asking the audience which they would choose.
"We know which we would choose, but we have to think of some other issues," he said. "There can be cost issues and pharmacy substitution issues. There are insurance panels that are going to have different tiers and different allowables. There are going to be patients with different types of insurance. Some patients may prefer a branded product."
"We have to understand our patients," Semes said.
Image courtesy of RobbsPhotos.com.