Compares medications taken by prisoners with people in the general community. Summary It is known that prisoners generally have poor health and complex health needs that are reflected in the number and types of medications they take. Less is known about how this medication use compares with people in the general community. This bulletin uses...

This paper is an examination of the power of economists - and their constructed institutions - in the mobilisation of the US pharmaceutical industry in the 1970s, and their continued influence in how the industry controls our knowledge about drugs today.

Antidepressants are not as effective as we once believed. Summary Australia has one of the highest rates of antidepressant use in the world; it has more than doubled since 2000, despite evidence showing that the effectiveness of these medications is lower than previously thought. An increasing placebo response rate is a key reason for falling...

Older people living in long-term care facilities often have multimorbidity, requiring many prescription medicines. However, polypharmacy in older people is also associated with hospitalisations, adverse drug events, drug–drug interactions, drug– disease interactions, falls, impaired functional capacity and cognitive impairment. This article suggests that reducing polypharmacy may reduce adverse events and maintain quality of life.

The Pharmacy Guild of Australia claims that bringing forward reductions in the prices of prescription medicines will threaten the survival of local pharmacies.