Table 6 Analysis performed by the PTC

The ABC analysis 'identifies a drug suspect, it might be because this item is a high expenditure or high usage item.’

“ATC classification is an international classification for medicines, based on their groupings an example would be hypertensive medications.”

“We do have an RMU sub-committee—Rational medicine utilization sub-committee, they will do the rationalization review and afterwards they will come back with interventions… they will make recommendations and implement their strategies or to reverse or fix whatever the problem is.”

“Antimicrobial resistance framework strategy is one guideline that we are trying to implement…because antibiotics are overprescribed, and we encourage facilities to use various systems before the issuing of antibiotics. So those things are being looked at to influence the budget, as well as influence the resistance that might happen.”

“We do the ABC analysis at provincial level. We look at what the depot is getting from the supplier and what the depot is issuing to the facility. At facility level, they do their own ABC analysis on what they have issued at their facility.”

“In most cases, the facilities that have a strong PTC and are able to justify their particular usage… but these are the cost containment measures that we have to make sure that it is not misused or over-utilized. Once you have done that quarterly, we go back to our forecast…and then we will decide on all those reasons that we have picked up. You could actually go back to the facility level and counsel and improve issuing of the item to decrease expenditure.”