European Observatory on Health – serie

What is the best way to structure primary care services? How can coordination between primary care and other parts of health care systems be improved?How should new technologies be integrated into primary care? There is considerable agreement among national policy makers across Europe that, in principle, primary care should be the linchpin of a well-designed health care system. This agreement, however, does not carry over into the organizational mechanisms best suited to pursuing or achieving this common objective. Across western, central and eastern Europe, primary care is delivered through a wide range of institutional, financial, professional and clinical configurations. This book is a study of the reforms of primary care in Europe as well as their impacts on the broader co-ordination mechanisms within European health care systems. It also provides suggestions for effective strategies for future improvement in health care system reform.Primary Care in the Driver’s Seat is key reading for students studying health policy, health economics, public policy and management, as well as health managers and policy makers. Contributors: Richard Baker, University of Leicester; Sven-Eric Bergman, Bergman and Dahlbäck AB, Stockholm, Sweden; Wienke Boerma, Netherlands Institute of Health Services Research (NIVEL) in Utrecht, Netherlands; Mats Brommels, University of Helsinki and Karolinska Institute in Stockholm; Sweden; Michael Calnan, University of Bristol; Diana Delnoij, Netherlands Institute of Health Services Research (NIVEL) in Utrecht, Netherlands; Anna Dixon, London School of Economics and Political Science; Carl-Ardy Dubois, University of Montreal, Canada; Joan Gené Badia, Catalan Institute of Health in Barcelona, Spain; Bernhard Gibis, National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KBV), Berlin, Germany; Stefan Greß, Institute of Health Care Management of the University of Duisburg-Essen in Essen, Germany; Peter Groenewegen, Netherlands Institute of Health Services Research (NIVEL) and Utrecht University in Utrecht, Netherlands; Jan Heyrman, Catholic University Leuven (KULeuven) in Leuven, Belgium; Jack Hutten, Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sports, The Hague, Netherlands; Michael Kidd, University of Sydney; Australia; Mårten Kvist, Laitila-Pyhäranta Health Centre in Laitila, Finland; Miranda Laurant, Centre for Quality of Care Research of the Universities of Nijmegen and Maastricht in Nijmegen, Netherlands; Margus Lember, University of Tartu in Tartu, Estonia; Martin Marshall, University of Manchester; Alison McCallum, National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health (STAKES) in Helsinki, Finland and Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden; Toomas Palu, Europe and Central Asia Development Department of the World Bank in Washington DC, USA; Ana Rico, University of Oslo, Norway; Ray Robinson, London School of Economics and Political Science; Valentin Rusovich, Department of General Practice of the Belarussian Medical Academy for Continuous Medical Education (BelMAPO), Department of General Practice in Minsk, Belarus; Richard B. Saltman, Emory University, Atlanta, USA; Anthony Scott, University of Aberdeen; Rod Sheaff, Manchester University; Igor Svab, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia; Bonnie Sibbald, University of Manchester; Hrvoje Tiljak, Andrija Štampar School of Public Health, Zagreb, Croatia; Michel Wensing, Centre for Quality of Care Research of the Universities of Nijmegen and Maastricht in Nijmegen, Netherlands.

"This thoughtful and comprehensive book represents the best work I have seen on the current situation concerning medication policies in the EU. It is not just that this is a very up-to-date compendium of facts and data across a wide variety of domains that impact on pharmaceutical regulation. The book is also strong on analysis of those facts as well."Jerry Avorn, Harvard Medical School.

"This book offers a comprehensive examination of approaches to manage pharmaceutical expenditures in Europe. It is a must-read for those who seek to understand and navigate the changing regulatory environment for medicines in the European Union."Bernie O'Brien, McMaster University, Canada.

The rising cost of pharmaceutical expenditures in many European countries is of concern to governments required to make effective use of health care budgets. Taking a broad perspective that encompasses institutional, political and supranational aspects of pharmaceutical regulation, this book examines approaches used to manage pharmaceutical expenditure across Europe and what impact these strategies have had on efficiency, quality, equity and cost of pharmaceutical care.Regulating Pharmaceuticals in Europe is an important book for students of health policy, regulation and management, and for health managers and policy makers.

The editors:Elias Mossialos is Brian Abel-Smith Professor of Health Policy at the London School of Economics and Political Science and a Research Director of the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies.

Monique Mrazek is a Health Economist (Europe and Central Asia region) for the World Bank and formerly a Research Officer in Health Economics for the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies.

Tom Walley is Professor of Clinical Pharmacology at the University of Liverpool and Director of the UK National Health Technology Assessment Programme.

Contributors: Julia Abelson, Christa Altenstetter, Vittorio Bertele’, Christine Bond, Marcel L. Bouvy, Colin Bradley, Steve Chapman, Anna Dixon, Michael Drummond, Pierre Durieux, Edzard Ernst, Armin Fidler, Eric Fortess, Richard Frank, Silvio Garattini, Leigh Hancher, Ebba Holme Hansen, Steve Hudson, Kees de Jonchere, Panos Kanavos, Sjoerd Kooiker, Jean-Marc Leder, Graham Lewis, Donald W. Light, Alistair McGuire, Elias Mossialos, Monique Mrazek, Maria Pia Orru', Govin Permanand, Guenka Petrova, Munir Pirmohamed, Dennis Ross-Degnan, Frans Rutten, Steven Soummerai, David Taylor, Sarah Thomson, Tom Walley.