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Drug donations for Kosovo refugees and earthquake victims in Turkey In recent months, member companies of the GPHF and the Association of Research-based Pharmaceutical Manufacturers (Verband Forschender Arzneimittelhersteller e.V. - VFA) have supplied international relief organizations with drugs to the value of over DM 10 million as donations for Kosovo refugees and victims of the earthquake in Turkey. The donations were arranged in close consultation with relief organizations working on the spot and with GPHF acting as the primary coordinator. In connection with the ZDF TV show "Wir wollen helfen" [We want to help], broadcast on 26 August 1999, GPHF Board Member Bernd Maehliß announced the provision of drug donations to the value of DM 4 million for the earthquake victims of Turkey. German Health Minister Andrea Fischer has thanked the GPHF in a personal letter for its rapid and unbureaucratic assistance in coordinating and arranging the drug donations from its members for the crisis region of Kosovo. Dr. Carola Fink-Anthe, Vice-Chairperson of the GPHF, summed up the situation in positive terms: "Our strategy of making rapid contact between pharmaceutical manufacturers on the one hand and the relief agencies on the spot on the other has proved effective. As a result, we were able to provide precisely the drugs that were needed. Of course, this would not have been possible without the considerable humanitarian commitment of numerous firms that supplied us with the donations". Dr. Fink-Anthe also laid great stress on the fact that none of the medications supplied by GPHF was either inappropriate or close to its expiry date. "All of our donations were checked by the relief organizations and only forwarded subject to their consent. The remaining shelf-lives of the drugs was one of the main selection criteria. Negative criticism of "waste donations" does not apply in our case."
HMR provides donations for projects Hoechst Marion Roussel Deutschland GmbH has given the GPHF an additional DM 320,000 for relief projects in Kosovo and Turkey. Some of this money will go towards a children's hospital in Macedonia and a mobile clinic run by Johanniter-Unfallhilfe [St. John's accident assistance] in Kosovo. In Turkey the funds are being used in a World Health Organization project designed to create the necessary conditions for the diagnosis and management of the various health problems arising from the earthquake. Both Hoechst Marion Roussel and the GPHF hope that all the projects will result in a sustained improvement in the medical care of the people affected in the crisis regions.
Dialog initiated with relief organizations Similarly promising progress is being made in the dialog of the GPHF with major relief organizations about the practicalities of the drug donations started in recent months. Key problem areas in current donating practice were identified in two rounds of talks with representatives of pharmaceutical companies and, among others, the German Red Cross, the German Institute for Medical Missionary Work (Deutsches Institut für Ärztliche Mission) and the German drugs relief organization action medeor. All participants agreed that only a drug donation strategy meeting the needs of the people on the spot can make a real contribution towards the relief of human suffering. They hoped to see improvements in the future practice of drug donations through the regular exchange of information. The recently revised World Health Organization guidelines provide an important basis for drug donation policy and can be viewed on the Internet at www.who.int/dap/edmguidelines.html.
GPHF Iodine Deficiency project in Indonesia concluded Despite all the recent economic and political problems in Indonesia, the GPHF model project on the diagnosis of iodine deficiency disorders in Indonesia was concluded according to plan. A total of 7,500 children and 500 women have now been screened for iodine deficiency disorders in Java, Sumatra, Yogyakarta and Bali with the aid of the GPHF-funded mobile diagnosis unit, also known as the "Thyromobile". The final report on these extensive investigations is currently being prepared and should, in particular, provide the Indonesian authorities with guidelines for introducing appropriate treatments. Project partners working with GPHF in Indonesia include, in addition to the International Council for Control of Iodine Deficiency Disorders (ICCIDD), the Indonesian branch of GPHF member company Merck. WHO: conquering iodine deficiency A sustained absolute or relative deficiency of iodine below the physiological daily requirement can lead not just to hyperplasia of the thyroid gland, but also to irreversible brain damage, and is the leading cause of cretinism. Although the number of countries implementing corresponding diagnosis and treatment programs increased from 46 to 93 between 1990 and 1998, the WHO believes that iodine deficiency is still seriously neglected in public health programs. This particularly applies to numerous African and Asian countries. A 10-year WHO program focusing on these regions was presented in Geneva in May. In addition to the diagnosis and regular monitoring of iodine deficiency, adequate iodine supplementation in salt in the deficient regions is a key feature of the scheduled measures. An interim report on the program is to be presented in 2005, and the WHO considers that a successful outcome to the program would be on a par with the eradication of smallpox.
GPHF-Minilab®: Test methods developed for five new active drug ingredients The GPHF-Minilab®, with its simple test methods for the identification of counterfeit and substandard drugs, can now be used to test a further five active drug ingredients. The mobile mini-laboratory, developed by GPHF jointly with the Medical Missionary Institute in Würzburg, is suitable for use in tropical regions and is now capable of checking the quality of 20 active drug ingredients in worldwide use in a rapid, reliable and cost-effective manner. The substances newly incorporated in the range covered by the GPHF-Minilab® are the active drug ingredients aminophylline, furosemide, isoniazid, rifampicin and sulfadoxine/pyrimethamine. The mini-laboratory now offers even more comprehensive protection against the risks of poor-quality drugs, since it can now be used specifically to check medications for the treatment of the widespread illnesses of tuberculosis, malaria, asthma and hypertension/oedema. Over the past few months, the GPHF-Minilab® has again been presented to numerous international experts. Representatives from African and Central Asian drug regulatory authorities, for example, were briefed on the varied applications of the mobile laboratory in the run-up to the 9th International Conference for Drug Regulatory Authorities held in Berlin in April. Considerable interest in the simple test methods was also expressed at the Hamburg Tropical Institute, the Viennese Medical Association and by visitors attending a reception hosted by the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Associations (IFPMA) at the 52nd World Health Assembly in Geneva in May. Finally, Project Manager Dr. Jähnke presented the GPHF-Minilab® to numerous visitors attending the 35th annual conference of the US Drug Information Association (DIA) in Baltimore. His project has also been accorded special recognition by the World Health Organization (WHO), according to the GPHF, as a result of its decision to use the GPHF-Minilab® in future screening investigations as part of the WHO Roll Back Malaria program. During the World Health Assembly, the WHO demanded more effective measures to counter the growing number of substandard medications. According to the WHO figures, as many as 20 percent of medicines in developing countries would fail quality tests, and only one in six developing countries possesses an effective drug control system. The WHO believes that new partnerships are needed to solve these problems. Minilab nominated for EXPO 2000 An updated version of the leaflet entitled "The GPHF-Minilab® - Protection Against Counterfeits And Substandard Drug Products" can be obtained free of charge from the GPHF office or viewed on the Internet on the GPHF website at www.gphf.org.
GPHF continues Laos project The GPHF is continuing to sponsor the model project on the diagnosis and treatment of schistosomiasis and opisthorchiasis in Laos throughout 1999 and 2000. The project in the South-East Asian state has been implemented jointly with the World Health Organization and the Laotian health authorities and is proving outstandingly successful.
Further donations for GPHF project work The GPHF would like to thank the following companies for their generous donations in support of its project work:
Medicine Meets the Millenium Controlling epidemics from space? International network
"The greatest achievements to date in development aid have been the drastic reduction in infant mortality - a great feat of civilization - the drastic reduction in maternal mortality and the spread of western
hygiene, western medicine and western healthcare in the developing countries."
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