In the recent Public Forum organized by CASE, Vice President of PSS, Ms Fatimah MK shared with the participants a candid talk with real examples how drug pricing and choices can affect the bill size of patients’ visit to clinics.

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Entitled: Know Your Medicine, Understand Your Options was held at the NTUC Centre at 1 Marina Boulevard as scheduled on Saturday, 31-Mar-2007. The event was CASE's initiative to better equip & empower the public about their rights as consumers. PSS has always advocated the role of pharmacists to help healthcare consumer. In summary, the 4 points which PSS firmly endorse are:

1) Consumers should discuss with their doctors /pharmacists about medicine cost, about obtaining generic drugs as compared to proprietary or “branded” drugs if they feel reducing medicine cost is a priority. This is especially relevant for patients suffering from chronic diseases requiring long term medication.

2) Consumers should request for itemised billing from their doctors or pharmacies so that costs of medication are clear and transparent where they can make an inforrmed decision whether to purchase from the Drs or get a prescription to buy from a pharmacy.

3) Consumers should take charge of their medical condition, understand the medical condition, so that they can improve their condition. Improving condition using lifesyle changes could result in less medicine, thus reduce medicine cost, reduce healthcare cost.

4) Consumers must learn the name of the drugs, what are they for, how to use them properly, know what are common side effects and what are unexpected, adverse drug reactions which require urgent medical attention. This would ensure that they are getting the best result from their medicine.

Other speakers at the Forum were:

• Dr. Tan Sze Wee from Singapore Medical Association
• Ms. Ruth Lee from Centre for Drug Administration, HSA
• Mr. Ng Choon Peng from Singapore Association of Pharmaceutical Industry

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The Forum ended with a panel discussion where members of the public could ask questions related to healthcare and drugs in general.

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