Turks spend 17 bln TL for medicine every year

Turkish Health Ministry said on Thursday that Turkish people spent nearly 17 billion Turkish liras (TL) (nearly 9.6 billion USD) to buy medicine every year.

In an interview with the AA, Saim Kerman from Turkish Health Ministry's Pharmaceutics Department said his ministry had recently conducted a study to raise social awareness concerning the use of medicines.

Kerman said the study, conducted in numerous houses in and around the Aegean province of Izmir, revealed that families did not even open the package of nearly 45 percent of the medicine they purchased.

"We pay nearly 17 billion TL for medicine every year. These results show we spend a significant amount of our money for no purpose," the official said.

Kerman also noted that the Turkish Health Ministry would initiate a study in the coming term to brief citizens, doctors and pharmacists on "rational use of medicines".


/World Bulletin/