Healthcare professionals perceptions and perspectives on biosimilar medicines and the barriers and facilitators to their prescribing in UK: a qualitative study

Objective

To investigate UK healthcare professionals' perceptions and perspectives towards biosimilar infliximab, etanercept and insulin glargine and the potential barriers and facilitators to their prescribing.

Design

A cross-sectional qualitative study design was used.

Setting

Five hospitals within the West Midlands area in UK.

Interventions

30 min face-to-face, semistructured interviews of healthcare professionals.

Participants

22 healthcare professionals (consultants, nurses and pharmacists) participated in the semistructured interviews.

Outcomes

Participants' opinion and attitudes about biosimilars and the barriers and facilitators to the prescribing of infliximab, etanercept and insulin glargine biosimilars in gastroenterology, rheumatology and diabetology specialties.

Results

This study showed that UK healthcare professionals had good knowledge of biosimilars and were content to initiate them. Healthcare professionals disagreed with biosimilar auto-substitution at pharmacy level and multiple switching. Subtle differences among healthcare professionals were identified in the acceptance of switching stable patients, indication extrapolation and cost savings sharing.

Conclusion

Safety and efficacy concerns, patients' opinion and how cost savings were shared were the identified barriers to considering prescribing biosimilars. Real-life data and financial incentives were the suggested facilitators to increase biosimilar utilisation.

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