Lecture Notes in Pharmacy Practice

Each of us learned during our secondary school days that frogs are cold-blooded creatures. By definition, we came to know that frogs would adapt their body temperatures to their external surroundings. Through this process, the metabolic and circulatory systems of the frog could adjust the temperature of its blood and thereby survive the external environment. In contrast to the frog, social systems and their constituents do not adapt so effectively or efficiently. This is particularly evident in healthcare systems, owing to continuous global dialogue on access to care, organisation of health delivery, financing of healthcare services and products, and assuring safety and quality. Few countries have determined perfect solutions. Some have extreme difficulty adjusting to the events of the external environment. In the developed world, it is becoming clear that current healthcare systems may not be sustainable in the future. Major human, fiscal and infrastructure resources are required in the developing and transitional countries in order to provide a basic set of essential healthcare services to their respective populations.