TY - JOUR

T1 - How patients in Denmark acquire their medicines

T2 - overview, data sources and implications for pharmacoepidemiology

AU - Jensen, Thomas B.

AU - Andersen, Jon T.

AU - Jimenez-Solem, Espen

AU - Lund, Marie

N1 - Funding Information: Thomas Bo Jensen was supported by an unrestricted research grant from Helsefonden (grant number: 18‐B‐0205). Publisher Copyright: © 2020 Nordic Association for the Publication of BCPT (former Nordic Pharmacological Society)

PY - 2021

Y1 - 2021

N2 - The means by which patients acquire their medications differ between countries, and a knowledge of this is essential when conducting and interpreting pharmacoepidemiological studies. The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of how patients obtain medicines in Denmark, to relate these to nationwide registries available for research and to discuss the implications for research. Health services are predominantly tax-funded in Denmark, with dentistry and some medicine bought at community pharmacies being exceptions, involving partial reimbursement of charges. The paper gives an overview of prescription medicines acquired from community pharmacies (including magistral preparations), over-the-counter medicines, vaccinations and in-hospital medicine including so-called “free medicine” (in Danish: “vederlagsfri medicin”). “Free medicine” is medicines for a defined list of diseases and indications that is provided free of charge to patients in outpatient clinics. The paper also describes the content of the various Danish data sources about medicine use, summarizes their strengths and limitations, and exemplifies the ways of evaluating their completeness. An example is provided of the regional variation in the means by which medicines are acquired.

AB - The means by which patients acquire their medications differ between countries, and a knowledge of this is essential when conducting and interpreting pharmacoepidemiological studies. The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of how patients obtain medicines in Denmark, to relate these to nationwide registries available for research and to discuss the implications for research. Health services are predominantly tax-funded in Denmark, with dentistry and some medicine bought at community pharmacies being exceptions, involving partial reimbursement of charges. The paper gives an overview of prescription medicines acquired from community pharmacies (including magistral preparations), over-the-counter medicines, vaccinations and in-hospital medicine including so-called “free medicine” (in Danish: “vederlagsfri medicin”). “Free medicine” is medicines for a defined list of diseases and indications that is provided free of charge to patients in outpatient clinics. The paper also describes the content of the various Danish data sources about medicine use, summarizes their strengths and limitations, and exemplifies the ways of evaluating their completeness. An example is provided of the regional variation in the means by which medicines are acquired.

KW - drug prescriptions (MeSH)

KW - electronic health records (MeSH)

KW - in-hospital drug use

KW - non-prescription drugs (MeSH)

KW - pharmacoepidemiology (MeSH)

U2 - 10.1111/bcpt.13472

DO - 10.1111/bcpt.13472

M3 - Review

C2 - 32657031

AN - SCOPUS:85088557363

VL - 128

SP - 46

EP - 51

JO - Basic and Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology

JF - Basic and Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology

SN - 1742-7835

IS - 1

ER -