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The task of Cook Islands Pharmaceutical Service is to supply the country with all needed essential medicines and medical equipment. We endeavour to provide medicines that are cost-effective and of good quality to all the hospitals and health clinics in the country and to all Cook islanders with a prescription.
Medicines are a very important part of the health care in a country. Sufficient supply of essential medicines is critical to the success of all health programs. Most leading causes of discomfort, disability and premature death can be prevented, treated or at least alleviated with cost-effective essential medicines of high quality.
Even though proper use of high quality essential medicines is cost-effective they can still be quite costly for the Ministry of Health to purchase.
The management of medicines is consequently an important task which the personnel of the Cook Islands Pharmaceutical Service try to fulfil as good as possible.
Medicines require special attention because they are different from other consumer products.
Medicines of good quality used in the right way - the right medicine for the right disease used in the right quantity - make a lot of good. But medicines used in a wrong way - e. g. used when not needed or just in a wrong quantity - can cause a lot of harm, even death.
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