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Drug packaging: the 2006 awards

Although packaging plays an important part in good drug use, it is often neglected by pharmaceutical companies and drug regulatory agencies.

The chief aim of Prescrire’s packaging awards is to draw doctors’ and patients’ attention to packaging that can help improve drug use, and to the risks associated with poor packaging. The awards also point out which pharmaceutical companies are making an effort to design patient-friendly packaging, in the hope that this will encourage other companies to try harder.

In 2006, Prescrire's packaging monitoring team examined 656 packages and made 250 observations, both positive and negative. For each drug, the team analysed the secondary packaging (the packet), the primary packaging (bottle, blister pack, syringe, etc.), and the patient leaflet. They took into account the presentation of information identifying the drug (labelling, colours, etc.) and of patient information on the packaging and the leaflet, as well as safety features (child-proof closure, etc.).

The best received 2006 Packaging Awards while the worst were named and shamed. For 2006, Prescrire awarded 2 Packaging Awards, 3 "Yellow Cards" and 7 "Red Cards".

Prescrire’s 2006 Packaging Awards are posted on www.prescrire.org.

©Prescrire February 2007

Source: "Le palmarès 2006 du conditionnement" Rev Prescrire 2007 ; 27 (280) : 86.

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