There were about 20 private physicians, and there were 10 occupational health physicians, mainly involved in preventive work. This means that those specialists to a large extent see patients with rather uncomplicated problems. Eight pharmacies served the entire municipality, one of them at the Central Hospital. This corporation, which is owned by the Swedish Government, collects, stores and compiles statistics on all drug sales in Sweden, and data are available at the national, regional and county levels. On special request, data may also be obtained at the municipality level.
Data are available on prescriptions, prescribed items, costs and volumes.
Use of the pharmacy computer system during drug dispensing allow prescription patterns to be elucidated. So were also prescriptions from dentists, veterinarians, nurses, midwives, and physicians outside the county. During 1990-1997, the number and proportion of GPs increased, and the county council also made an effort to have more patients visit GPs rather than hospital physicians. The reimbursement system for prescription drugs in Sweden was changed by the Swedish Parliament in 1996, valid from January 1, 1997. This signified that patients in general had to pay a larger share of the price at the pharmacy desk after this date.