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Summary of ideas submitted in the Pharmaceutical, bio pharmaceutical and medical devices category…

• A health policy should be implemented whereby clinicians must conduct an assessment that ensures all repeat prescriptions are relevant and are being taken in order to reduce the amount of money wasted under the medical card system.
• A hub should be created for the Nutraceuticals, (a nutrient or food believed to have curative properties) and medical devices sector.
• A large pool of knowledge exists in the bio pharmaceuticals industry due to the presence of large multinationals. A system should be put in place to enable SMEs to harness this knowledge e.g. networking activities.
• All medicines should have the manufacturer’s price clearly printed on each purchase.
• Allow medical equipment e.g. Crutches, walking frames etc to be recycled.
• Alternative medicine should be used more frequently in our hospitals.
• Become a centre of excellence for diabetes e.g. many restaurants cater for coeliacs but not diabetics at present.
• Build a cluster of pharmaceutical companies in the Cork docklands area.
• Compile a list of the top 20/30 drugs reimbursed by the state. Refund the cost of the cheapest generic equivalent only. If people want the market leader, let them pay for it.
• Consider proper recycling of medical products (medicines/appliances etc) of all types.
• Design and build an all-inclusive online Irish patient healthcare database. This can be exported to the world when successfully implemented.
• Develop human bionic skeletons.
• Develop medical devices based on surgeons’ ideas.
• Develop universal products that are suitable to as wide a range of abilities as possible.
• Doctors should provide over-the-counter rather than prescription drugs where possible.
• Encourage all pharmaceutical companies to have uniform packaging of medication, i.e. strips of 7 or 28. At present some brands of tablets are in packets of 28, while others are in packets of 30. This inevitably leads to repeat prescriptions being out of sync and a lot of waste.
• Encourage farmers to grow pharmaceutical plants by giving grants and supports and opening factories for their manufacturing, making a sustainable internal market.
• Ensure that the SMEs in pharmaceutical sector have the business skills required to ensure that the company is successful.
• Establish specialised units where drunk/drugged individuals can be taken to “sleep off” their symptoms as opposed to taking up space in Accident and Emergency units in hospitals.
• Every drug utilised in Ireland has to be registered with the Irish Medicines Board regardless of whether they are registered in another European jurisdiction, thus increasing the cost. If we were allowed to purchase and use medicines which are registered in other EU states we would immediately have a vibrant and competitive marketplace.
• Give GPs direct referral rights for certain conditions.
• GPs should be charged for pathology tests requested by them and carried out in pathology laboratories nationwide. The cost of the agents used in the process is phenomenal and perhaps it could be produced in Ireland.
• GPs should prescribe generic drugs.(Many variations on this idea)
• If a doctor prescribes a branded drug and if there is a generic of that drug available, medical card patients should have to pay the difference in price between the generic and the brand.
• Implement a facility whereby individuals/companies can make payments to the Revenue in advance (a type of credit account) when funds are available as opposed to when deadlines arise.
• Implement a system whereby assistive technology and mobility aids used in rehabilitation schemes can be recycled.