Bitter Pills:Medicines & The Third World Poor | Page 220

One local marketing manager interviewed (September 1980) considered (a) an underestimate
and the true figure nearer 40%, and (c) and (d) overestimates in terms of value, not volume.
The Marketing Director of Squibb of Bangladesh Ltd. gives turnover in 1980 as vitamins and
nutritionals - 31.8% and antacids - 12.8%.
62

Expert Committee, Evaluation of Registered/Licensed
Policy, Dacca, 11 May 1982, p.92.

Products and Draft National Drug

63

We understand from inquiries made by our Field staff in Bangladesh that these product lists
were current at the beginning of 1982, but we have no written confirmation from either company
of precisely which drugs are currently marketed in Bangladesh. See Appendices 11 and III.
Also, WHO, 1979, op.cit.

64

See Chapter 5,

65

Antidiarrhoeals: Fistrep (combination of streptomycin sulphate and clioquinol) and Enterfram
(liquid preparation of neomycin sulphate and kaolin). For dangers of clioquinol, see page and
for appropriateness of antibiotics for use in diarrhoea (especially "infantile diarrhoea"
recommended in Fisons (Bangladesh) Limited Price List of Products, 1 September 1978) •
"Antibiotic....preparations should be avoided for the treatment of diarrhoea even when
a bacterial cause is suspected.." (BNF, 1981, op. cit., p.40, original emphasis.)

66

BNF, 1981, op. cit., pp.291 and 286.

67

Wolfe, Coley and the Health Research Group, Pills that Don't Work, Farrar Straus Girouz,
New York, 1981, p.35.

68

Prof. M.D. Rawlins, Head Department of Pharmacological Sciences, University of Newcastle
upon Tyne, personal communication, 8 February 1982.

69

Letter from Fisons (UK) to Prof. Rawlins,'21 February 1981.

70

Dr. John Yudkin, personal communication 25 November 1980. "Digeplex: No justification
for using enmzymes in' 'indigestion''. The indications would be malabsorption for pancreatic
failure - which can indeed happen in long-standing malnutrition, but needs specific diagnosis
before it's used. Also vitamin B complex deficiency is not a basic cause of digestive disorders."
(original emphasis)

71

Dr. Martin Schweiger, personal communication, 13 July 1980.

72

Schweiger, "A Comparison of Drugs Marketed by Two British Companies in the United
Kingdom and Bangladesh", 1979. (unpublished paper)

73

GLAXO UK: In our letter of 8 May 1981 to Glaxo's Group Consumer Products Co-ordinator
we wrote: "On medicines you will remember I was keen to have the names of colleagues on
the Ethical Pharmaceuticals side with whom I might discuss issues such as the product range
in Bangladesh and the feasibility of switching production to drugs more in line with health
needs and the priorities of the Government in Bangladesh." We received no reply. We wrote
a long letter raising specific and general queries on 20 January 1982, with follow-up telephone
calls on 26 March, 13 and 26 April and letters on 27 April and 19 May. On 29 January 1982
J. Barr (Group Public Relations) wrote: "This our letter of 20 January has been passed to
this office for actioning and further contact will be made when the matters raised have been
fully considered". A further letter of 16 June 1982 from Glaxo's Public Relations Manager
does not respond to our request for comments on the range of products sold in Bangladesh
(or give details of their current product range), citing the fact that in 1981 we discussed these
issues with Mr Bamett, Glaxo Group Consumer Products Coordinator. In fact our discussion
then focussed-mainly on sales of artificial baby milk and Mr. Barnett suggested the Bangladesh
pharmaceutical product range would be more appropriately discussed with colleagues on the
ethical Pharmaceuticals side.
GLAXO (BANGLADESH):