Taking Action on Access to Medicines
IPPOSI wants all Irish patients to have equitable and early access to new and innovative medicines and to enjoy the best health outcomes. As the national health budget grapples with a growing (and aging) patient population with a rising medicines bill, our multi-stakeholder, patient-centered, consensus-led work in this area remains as important as ever.
In 2018, IPPOSI prioritised Access to Medicines.
Patient Charter
on medicines assessment & reimbursement in ireland
36 Irish patient organisations have signed a Charter calling for greater patient involvement. The Charter calls on the government to improve the transparency, accountability and communication on how medicines are assessed & reimbursed by the State.
The Charter was co-ordinated by the Irish Platform for Patient Organisations, Science & Industry (IPPOSI), with the support of the Medical Research Charities Group (MRCG) and Rare Disease Ireland (RDI).
actions in 2018
Member Survey
Working togetherPriorities
A member survey has identified our 2018 access to medicine priorities and establish our advocacy strategy. Click here to view survey results.
Patient Charter
Working togetherVision
A Patient Involvement Charter outlines our shared vision for patient involvement in health technology assessment (HTA) and post-HTA processes.
Round table meeting
Working togetherMulti-stakeholder
A roundtable meeting will continue the national, multi-stakeholder dialogue around access to medicines between patients, academia, industry, regulators and government representatives (completed in partnership with the MRCG).
'Drug Iceberg' Reports
Working togetherSolutions
A second and third version of the “Drug Iceberg” report (first published in 2017) explore Irish access to medicine challenges in greater detail and chart progress against the report recommendations (completed in partnership with the MRCG).
Patient education
Working togetherTraining
An IPPOSI-led patient education programme, piloted in 2018, provides patients with an in-depth, practical understanding of Health Technology Assessment (HTA) in Ireland.
Global Perspectives
Working togetherWebinar
On 16th of May, 2018 IPPOSI hosted a 60-minute webinar that provided international perspectives on patient & public involvement in health technology assessment. Click here to view and listen to the recording of this webinar.
Patient Submission Form
Working togetherPatients involved
A review of the NCPE Patient Submission Form will improve how patients input into the Health Technology Process (HTA) process. Click here to read the IPPOSI submission to this consultation.
Guiding Principles
Multi-stakeholder
We believe that health stakeholders in Ireland should work together in partnership for the benefit of patients. Access to Medicines is a frequent topic of discussion in our patient-led, multi-stakeholder platform which facilitates dialogue between patients, science and industry. Our members call for a national conversation to align patient expectations with health resources.
consensus-led
We believe that health solutions should be arrived at by consensus. IPPOSI is ideally placed to identify where our member interests align and what common objectives can be pursued. Concerns around the national strategy which informs access to medicines in Ireland are universally shared, and our members call for a more transparent, sustainable and equitable approach.
Patient-centred
We believe that decisions should not be made on behalf of patients but with patients. IPPOSI is an advocate for patients as partners and for patient involvement in decision-making. Patients are solution-oriented, and our members call for an independent review to determine what medicines are accessible, and what process efficiencies and patient outcome improvements can be achieved
‘Drug Iceberg’ reports
Previous Activity
Since 2008 access to health innovations such as new medicines, technologies, devices, processes has been a key area of focus for IPPOSI. IPPOSI has led the debate in this area, highlighting a number of key challenges and proposing possible solutions through a number of initiatives:
IPPOSI has developed and maintained strong working relationships with a number of national and international stakeholders and state agencies in the area of Health Technology Assessments (HTA) in Ireland. More information on specific IPPOSI actions in HTAs are available here.
In 2012 IPPOSI held a round-table meeting entitled “Access to Innovation” in response to issues raised by IPPOSI members on access to new treatments (drugs and technologies). The outcome report (pictured on the left) is available here.
In 2008 IPPOSI hosted a major conference entitled ‘Access to Medicines and New Medical Technologies in the Era of Health Technology Assessment in Ireland’. The conference compared the Irish and European HTA contexts and brought together world class speakers from Ireland and the UK. The outcome report for this event is available here.