Children Everywhere Deserve Evidence-Based and Accessible Treatment

Abstract

Availability and affordability of medicines are crucial to delivery of health services in any community. In many countries, public sector institutions play a significant role in providing health services but when public health facilities lack medicines they risk losing trust of the population. Children and families will go elsewhere or be forced into the private sector where care and medicines are often unaffordable. Child-specific issues complicate the pre-existing challenges of adequate financing, timely procurement and distribution of quality-assured medicines in many low and middle income countries. Progress has been made in recent years with renewed efforts at the global, regional and national level to improve access to paediatric medicines. Effort has been focused to reduce stock-outs and to ensure availability of appropriate dosage forms. Emphasis has also been placed on increasing demand for evidence-based prescribing, supporting quality use by health providers. Further research is needed in critical facets, including preclinical and clinical studies and incentivization of the private sector.