Various classes of finite-dimensional closed convex cones are studied. Equivalent characterizations of pointed cones, pyramids and rational pyramids are given. Special class of regular cones, corresponding to "continuous linear" quasiorderings of integer vectors is introduced and equivalently characterized. It comprehends both pointed cones and rational pyramids. Two different ways of determini...

Improving access and rational use of psychotropic medications in low- and middle-income countries is an important factor in reducing the public health burden resulting from mental illness. This paper considers each component of the medications management cycle to identify current barriers to improvement. Selection is hindered by a lack of up to date local essential drugs lists, while procuremen...

The paper Rational Drug Therapy by Mathur el al.(1) made interesting reading. The authors have given very useful suggestions for curbing the problem of irrational drug use. However, most of these suggestions are based on the 'policing' approach which, we are afraid, may not succeed in country like ours. Unfortunately, our legal system leaves a lot of loop holes (albiet in good faith) which are ...

Antibiotic resistance is a serious health problem. The use of new dosage forms antibiotics should comply with the strategy rational antimicrobials, which includes set measures for hospitals and outpatient network aimed at preserving effectiveness existing antibiotics. principles antimicrobial/antibacterial drugs: exclusion unjustified prescribing antibiotics, priority drugs based on identificat...

Implementation of electronic prescribing system can overcome many problems of the paper prescribing system, and provide numerous opportunities of more effective and advantageous prescribing. Successful implementation of such a system requires complete and deep understanding of work content, human force, and workflow of paper prescribing. The current study was designed in order to model the curr...

BACKGROUND A randomised trial of a multifaceted intervention for improving adherence to clinical practice guidelines for the pharmacological management of hypertension and hypercholesterolemia increased prescribing of thiazides, but detected no impact on the use of cardiovascular risk assessment tools or achievement of treatment targets. We carried out a predominantly quantitative process evalu...

BACKGROUND Antimicrobial resistance has emerged in recent years as a significant public health threat, which requires both an ethical and a scientific approach. In a recent Policy Delphi study, on-farm use of antimicrobials was a key concern identified by veterinary professionals in Ireland. In this case study (the second in a series of three resulting from a research workshop exploring the cha...

abstract background: in most countries, one of the main reasons for developing more advanced roles for nurses is to improve access to care in the context of limited number of doctors. it is considered that the introduction of major policy initiatives, such as nurse prescribing, requires high-level discussion and policy development to ensure successful implementation. this study aimed to identif...

BACKGROUND Lipid-lowering medication remains underused, even in high-risk populations. The objective of this study was to determine factors underlying general practitioners' decisions not to prescribe such drugs to patients with type 2 diabetes. METHODS A qualitative study with semi-structured interviews using real cases was conducted to explore reasons for not prescribing lipid-lowering medi...

OBJECTIVES To improve education and information for general practitioners in relation to rational antibiotic prescribing for urinary tract infection (UTI), it is important to be aware of GPs' views of resistance and how it influences their choice of UTI treatment. The aim of this study was to explore variations in views of resistance and UTI treatment decisions among general practitioners (GPs)...