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The Dutch’s confidence in their medicines has increased slightly. This is the conclusion of the Medicines Evaluation Board (MEB). Four years ago the Dutch gave their medicines a 7.9, now it’s 8.2.
Vaccines also receive a more than adequate score of 7.8, according to the survey of more than 1,000 consumers/patients conducted by research agency Nivel. There is, however, less trust in corona vaccines than in vaccines in general. Corona vaccines are rated with a 6.8. Side effects are most commonly cited as a factor that can reduce confidence.
High trust in doctors and pharmacists
Trust in doctors and pharmacists as a source of information on medicines is still high. The flyer also scores well. 8 out of 10 respondents trust the leaflet very much, compared to 7 out of 10 in 2018. As in 2018, drug information on social media, such as Twitter and Facebook, is the least trusted.
The vast majority of respondents (85%) say they have great confidence in research on drug efficacy and safety. 83% are confident in drug quality and drug entry requirements. Medication control is trusted by 78% of respondents.
You need better inserts
Ton de Boer, president of the MEB, says it is important to maintain this consumer confidence in medicines because “if people are positive about their medicine, they will use it better”.
However, he sees room for improvement in medicines leaflets. They need to become more patient-friendly and explain in understandable language what the medicine or vaccine does and what the advantages and disadvantages are.
