Jude Murison

Introduction: Why Stories Behind the Findings?

Academic literature rarely gives an account of the ‘story behind the findings’, meaning the ethical challenges and emotional pitfalls that you, the researcher, are confronted with before, during and after the field experience. These quagmires have a potentially profound impact upon both the research process and its findings. They deserve proper attention, not only to fathom the inevitable bias in researchers’ position in the field and to assess the quality of the research findings, but also to illustrate that the facade of ‘scientific validity and neutrality’ often hides a pragmatic approach that has shaped the empirical research process. As Wilkinson writes, ‘both as social scientists and as human beings, we have a responsibility to “tell it as it happened,” rather than how we would have liked it to be’ (2008, p. 60). Acknowledging this does not degrade the quality and value of empirical data; instead, it places the results of field research into broader socio-political context regardless of the academic discipline that produced the findings.

The availability of six tracer medicines in private medicine outlets in Uganda

ObjectivesMany low income countries struggle to provide safe and effective medicines due to poor public health care infrastructure, budgetary constraints, and lack of human resource capacity. Private sector pharmacies and drug shops are used by a majority of the population as an alternative to public pharmacies. This study looks at the availability of six essential medicines in private drug outlets across Uganda.MethodsA standardised medicines availability survey developed by the World Health Organization and Health Action International was adapted for use in this project to collect availability data for six tracer medicines in 126 private medicine outlets across four districts in Uganda from September 2011 to October 2012.ResultsArtemisinin-based combination treatments and metformin were the most commonly found medicines in the private medicine outlets surveyed. Ninty-nine percent of all outlets carried artemisinin-based combinations while 93% of pharmacies and 53% of drug shops stocked metformin. Oxytocin was found in one third of outlets surveyed. Fluoxetine was in 70% of pharmacies yet was not found in any drug shops. Rifampicin and lamivudine were found infrequently in outlets across all districts; 10% and 2%, respectively. Not all brands found in surveyed outlets were listed on the Ugandan National Drug Register. In particular, five unlisted brands of rifampicin were found in private medicine outlets.ConclusionsThe regulatory process should be improved through the enforcement of outlet licensing and medicine registration. Additional studies to elucidate the reasons behind the use of private medicine outlets over the public sector would assist the government in implementing interventions to increase use of public sector medicine outlets.