Holmes J K
Ir Med J. 1992 Dec;85(4):154-6.
A group of thirty General Practitioners in the Sligo/Leitrim area were studied to examine their prescribing patterns of commonly-occurring clinical situations. Using a structured questionnaire, the doctors were presented with seven case histories of conditions which were both common and require a prescription. The doctors were asked to to record the drug that they would prescribe in a normal situation. The results were analysed according to the range of drugs used, the degree of generic versus proprietary prescribing and the variation in costs for each case and for each doctor. The study was carried out in October 1990-March 1991. Of all the prescriptions written, 21% were for generic preparations (ie 46 out of 210) and these were most commonly chosen in the areas of Tonsillitis and Osteoarthritis. Prescribers of generics showed no differences as regards age, size of practice or distance from hospital. The choice of drug was most consistent in the area of Urinary Tract Infection, which was also the cheapest prescribing area. Prescribing for Non-Ulcer-Dyspepsia showed the greatest variation in drug choice and was also the most expensive area of the cases in this study. Doctors who used generic preparations in at least three of the seven cases in this study demonstrated a saving of 21% in their prescribing costs. Overall, the degree of generic prescribing was greatest in the areas where the potential savings were only moderate and the least generic prescribing was present in the group of drugs where the greatest potential savings might be made.
对斯莱戈/利特里姆地区的30名全科医生进行了研究，以检查他们在常见临床情况下的处方模式。通过结构化问卷，向医生提供了七个常见且需要开处方的病例病史。要求医生记录他们在正常情况下会开的药。根据所使用药物的范围、通用名与专利药处方的程度以及每个病例和每个医生的成本差异对结果进行了分析。该研究于1990年10月至1991年3月进行。在所有开出的处方中，21%是通用制剂（即210份中有46份），这些制剂最常用于扁桃体炎和骨关节炎领域。通用名药的开方者在年龄、诊所规模或与医院的距离方面没有差异。在尿路感染领域，药物选择最一致，这也是最便宜的开方领域。非溃疡性消化不良的处方在药物选择上差异最大，也是本研究中这些病例中最昂贵的领域。在本研究的七个病例中至少有三个使用通用制剂的医生在处方成本上节省了21%。总体而言，通用名药处方程度在潜在节省仅适度的领域最大，而在可能实现最大潜在节省的药物组中，通用名药处方最少。
