Counterfeit drugs set alarm bells ringing: comparative analysis of drug policies

Objective: The main purpose of this study is to analyse and determine the opinion of a group of pharmacists who are the owners or shareholders in the Sudanese medicine importing companies and their perception concerning the effects of the government’s new Pharmacy, Poisons, Cosmetics and Medical Devices Act has had on the quality of medicines in Sudan. Methods: The study proposal was discussed to identify and improve the quality of medicines in Sudan. The survey was deliberately drug importers biased, as low quality medicines from informal sources will affect their business. The author then designed a self-administered questionnaire of 14 close-ended questions and one open question. Results: 93% of participants either strongly agree (73%) or agree (20%) the increased number of non-registered medicines distributors will facilitate the marketing of low quality medicines. Nearly three-quarters (71%) agreed the pre-marketing surveillance is not enough to ensure the quality of medicines. The law regulating medicines was judged by the respondents as generally adequate (68%). Conclusions: The study reveals the need for further research to find out how efficient the regulatory authorities at both federal and state levels are. The research also needed to discover whether or not counterfeit medicines are sold on the Sudanese market.