To what extent does pharmaceutical company research in South Africa reflect the countries burden of disease?

Abstract

This study compares pharmaceutical company research on new medicines in South Africa with the country’s burden of disease and describes the process and criteria that companies use to set their research priorities. A quantitative survey of pharmaceutical companies shows that company research conducted from 2000 to 2003 is moderately associated with the country’s burden of disease estimates for 2000. The degree of association is dependent on which measures of company research and burden of disease are compared, and which comparative statistic is used. A qualitative analysis of company interviews reveals that feasibility of clinical trials, market forces, and environmental factors are core criteria for company research priority setting. The burden of disease, although important, is not a sole criterion, and has considerable limitations. Furthermore, this study reveals the complex nature of health priority setting by pharmaceutical companies and thus can assist policy decision makers in identifying practical strategies to encourage research in diseases of need by pharmaceutical companies.