PHARMACEUTICAL CARE IN COMMUNITY PHARMACY IN THE REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA. A COMPARED STUDY WITH EU COUNTRIES

Abstract

In recent years in the Republic of Macedonia, the pharmaceutical legislation has undergone permanent modifications in terms of the unification with the European legislation. In essence, the establishment of certain new criteria and the amendment of the whole set of standards uniform in the EU, will undoubtedly help in increasing the quality of pharmaceutical services and will guarantee the patients’ health. The Republic of Macedonia has a social healthcare system. Pharmacies are in private ownership but healthcare authorities regulate the prices of medications and the number of pharmacies across the whole territory. Many of these pharmacies have concluded regular collaboration contracts with the Health Insurance Fund of the Republic of Macedonia. The services provided by these pharmacies consist mainly in the distribution of prescribed medications and OTC preparations, nutrition products, medication usage recommendations, effects and anti-effects, etc. This paper aims at reviewing the existing legislation, the reforms carried out in time, the existing status of the pharmaceutical community in Macedonia, while comparing it with some of the countries of the EU. Special emphasis will be put on reviewing the possibilities for better inclusion of pharmacists in the healthcare system so that they can become participants in the healthcare provision teams as well as get included in the activities for the prevention of different diseases. In this respect, lots of research in international literature, including scientific articles, presentations, technical reports, and other studies has been carried out in order to present the experiences from the EU member states.