Exploring the training of chinese medical staff oriented to the need for clinical drug information services: from the perspective of drug information patients obtained and need.

BACKGROUND: There are some gaps between the training of drug information service competencies for medical staff and drug information patients need in China. OBJECTIVE: To investigate drug information patients obtained and need for further providing directions for the training of drug information service competencies among medical staff in China from patients' perspectives. METHODS: A face-to-face nationwide survey was conducted using a stratified sampling method. Data were analyzed descriptively using frequencies, percentages and mean. Several subgroup analyses using Chi-square tests were conducted to identify patients' need for drug information in China. RESULTS: A total of 1994 questionnaires from medical institutions in China were returned. Most of the drug information obtained by patients came from physicians, and different types of drug information were important to patients. Additionally, patients had different needs for drug information due to age, gender, diagnosis and treatment status, and education level. CONCLUSIONS: The training of medical staff needs to increase the presence of nurses and pharmacists in drug information services, enhance the awareness of "patient-centered" services, and improve the ability to provide information services specific to the characteristics of patients.

Tertiary drug information sources for treatment and prevention of COVID-19.

Objective: To evaluate tertiary drug information databases in terms of scope, consistency of content, and completeness of COVID-19 drug information. Methods: Five electronic drug information databases: Clinical Pharmacology, Lexi-Drugs, AHFS DI (American Hospital Formulary Service Drug Information), eFacts and Comparisons, and Micromedex In-Depth Answers, were evaluated in this cross-sectional evaluation study, with data gathered from October 2021 through February 2022. Two study investigators independently extracted data (parallel extraction) from each resource. Descriptive statistics were primarily used to evaluate scope (i.e., whether the resource addresses use of the medication for treatment or prevention of COVID-19) and completeness of content (i.e., whether full information is provided related to the use of the medication for treatment or prevention of COVID-19) based on a 10-point scale. To analyze consistency among resources for scope, the Fleiss multi-rater kappa was used. To analyze consistency among resources for type of recommendation (i.e., in favor, insufficient evidence, against), a two-way mixed effects intraclass coefficient was calculated. Results: A total of 46 drug monographs, including 3 vaccination monographs, were evaluated. Use of the agents for treatment of COVID-19 was most frequently addressed in Lexi-Drugs (73.9%), followed by eFacts and Comparisons (71.7%), and Micromedex (54.3%). The highest overall median completeness score was held by AHFS DI followed by Micromedex, and Clinical Pharmacology. There was moderate consistency in terms of scope (kappa 0.490, 95% CI 0.399-0.581, p<0.001) and recommendations (intraclass correlation coefficient 0.518, 95% CI 0.385-0.651, p<0.001). Conclusion: Scope and completeness results varied by resource, with moderate consistency of content among resources.

Drug information-seeking behaviours of physicians, nurses and pharmacists: A systematic literature review.

BACKGROUND: Medication use typically involves physicians prescribing, pharmacists reviewing, and nurses administering medications to patients. Drug information (DI) is often required during the process, with the various health care professionals (HCPs) seeking information differently according to their needs and familiarity with various resources. OBJECTIVE: This systematic literature review aims to evaluate studies on drug information-seeking behaviour (ISB) of physicians, nurses and pharmacists to ascertain their DI needs, DI sources used, facilitators and barriers to DI-seeking. METHODS: A systematic search was conducted on PubMed, Embase.com, Scopus, PsycINFO, CINAHL and Cochrane Library to identify eligible primary research articles published between January 2000 and May 2020. RESULTS: The reviewed studies (N = 48) revealed that HCPs have a wide range of DI needs, with the top needs being similar across the three HCPs. Information sources used most often by all three groups were tertiary, followed by human and primary sources. Factors relating to the source characteristics were the most reported facilitators and barriers to DI-seeking. Some differences in drug ISB were also identified. CONCLUSION: Our findings can also guide information providers and educators to optimize information provision. It may also facilitate effective communication amongst HCPs when obtaining DI from or providing DI to one another.

Off-label use information in electronic drug information resources.

Objective: To compare electronic drug information resources for scope, completeness, and consistency of off-label uses information, and to group resources into tiers based on these endpoints. Methods: An evaluation study of six electronic drug information resources (Clinical Pharmacology, Lexi-Drugs, American Hospital Formulary Service Drug Information, Facts and Comparisons Off-Label, Micromedex Quick Answers, and Micromedex In-Depth Answers) was conducted. All off-label uses for the top 50 prescribed medications, by volume, were extracted from all resources and used to determine scope (i.e., whether the resource listed the use). Fifty randomly selected uses were then evaluated for completeness (i.e., whether the entry cited clinical practice guidelines, cited clinical studies, provided a dose, described statistical significance, and described clinical significance) and consistency (i.e., whether the resource provided the same dose as the majority). Results: A sample of 584 uses was generated. The largest number of listed uses was in Micromedex In-Depth Answers (67%), followed by Micromedex Quick Answers (43%), Clinical Pharmacology (34%), and Lexi-Drugs (32%). The highest scoring resources for completeness were Facts and Comparisons Off-Label (median score 4/5), Micromedex In-Depth Answers (median score 3.5/5), and Lexi-Drugs (median score 3/5). Consistency with the majority in terms of dosing was highest for Lexi-Drugs (82%), Clinical Pharmacology (62%), Micromedex In-Depth Answers (58%), and Facts and Comparisons Off-Label (50%). Conclusion: The top-tiered resources for scope were Micromedex In-Depth and Quick Answers. For completeness, the top-tiered resources were Facts and Comparisons Off-Label and Micromedex In-Depth Answers. Lexi-Drugs and Clinical Pharmacology were the most consistent in dosing.

Development of a Drug Information Service Collaborative in Academia.

Evidence-based medicine (EBM) has been positively accepted by clinicians; however, there are barriers to practicing EBM that create gaps between EBM and current clinical practice. A pharmacist-led drug information (DI) service initiative was established to overcome common barriers to practicing EBM. The service utilizes technology and a collaborative model among otherwise independent academic DI centers to provide efficient high-quality service to health care professionals. It was piloted at a large health care system with positive user satisfaction. The unique technological collaborative has shown several benefits, including increased efficiency and peer learning among DI pharmacists.

Routine Health Information System (RHIS) improvements for strengthened health system management.

BACKGROUND: A well-functioning routine health information system (RHIS) can provide the information needed for health system management, for governance, accountability, planning, policy making, surveillance and quality improvement, but poor information support has been identified as a major obstacle for improving health system management. OBJECTIVES: To assess the effects of interventions to improve routine health information systems in terms of RHIS performance, and also, in terms of improved health system management performance, and improved patient and population health outcomes. SEARCH METHODS: We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) in the Cochrane Library, MEDLINE Ovid and Embase Ovid in May 2019. We searched Global Health, Ovid and PsycInfo in April 2016. In January 2020 we searched for grey literature in the Grey Literature Report and in OpenGrey, and for ongoing trials using the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) and ClinicalTrials.gov. In October 2019 we also did a cited reference search using Web of Science, and a 'similar articles' search in PubMed. SELECTION CRITERIA: Randomised and non-randomised trials, controlled before-after studies and time-series studies comparing routine health information system interventions, with controls, in primary, hospital or community health care settings. Participants included clinical staff and management, district management and community health workers using routine information systems. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Two authors independently reviewed records to identify studies for inclusion, extracted data from the included studies and assessed the risk of bias. Interventions and outcomes were too varied across studies to allow for pooled risk analysis. We present a 'Summary of findings' table for each intervention comparisons broadly categorised into Technical and Organisational (or a combination), and report outcomes on data quality and service quality. We used the GRADE approach to assess the certainty of the evidence. MAIN RESULTS: We included six studies: four cluster randomised trials and two controlled before-after studies, from Africa and South America. Three studies evaluated technical interventions, one study evaluated an organisational intervention, and two studies evaluated a combination of technical and organisational interventions. Four studies reported on data quality and six studies reported on service quality. In terms of data quality, a web-based electronic TB laboratory information system probably reduces the length of time to reporting of TB test results, and probably reduces the overall rate of recording errors of TB test results, compared to a paper-based system (moderate certainty evidence). We are uncertain about the effect of the electronic laboratory information system on the recording rate of serious (misidentification) errors for TB test results compared to a paper-based system (very low certainty evidence). Misidentification errors are inaccuracies in transferring test results between an electronic register and patients' clinical charts. We are also uncertain about the effect of the intervention on service quality (timeliness of starting or changing a patient's TB treatment) (very low certainty evidence). A hand-held electronic device probably improves the length of time to report TB test results, and probably reduces the total frequency of recording errors in TB test results between the laboratory notebook and the electronic information record system, compared to a paper-based system (moderate-certainty evidence). We are, however, uncertain about the effect of the intervention on the frequency of serious (misidentification) errors in recording between the laboratory notebook and the electronic information record, compared to a paper-based system (very low certainty evidence). We are uncertain about the effect of a hospital electronic health information system on service quality (length of time outpatients spend at hospital, length of hospital stay, and hospital revenue collection), compared to a paper-based system (very low certainty evidence). High-intensity brief text messaging (SMS) may make little or no difference to data quality (in terms of completeness of documentation of pregnancy outcomes), compared to low-intensity brief text messaging (low-certainty evidence). We are uncertain about the effect of electronic drug stock notification (with either data management support or product transfer support) on service quality (in terms of transporting stock and stock levels), compared to paper-based stock notification (very low certainty evidence). We are uncertain about the effect of health information strengthening (where it is part of comprehensive service quality improvement intervention) on service quality (health worker motivation, receipt of training by health workers, health information index scores, quality of clinical observation of children and adults) (very low certainty evidence). AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: The review indicates mixed effects of mainly technical interventions to improve data quality, with gaps in evidence on interventions aimed at enhancing data-informed health system management. There is a gap in interventions studying information support beyond clinical management, such as for human resources, finances, drug supply and governance. We need to have a better understanding of the causal mechanisms by which information support may affect change in management decision-making, to inform robust intervention design and evaluation methods.

Exploration of the Molecular Mechanism of FUZI (Aconiti Lateralis Radix Praeparata) in Allergic Rhinitis Treatment Based on Network Pharmacology.

FUZI (Aconiti Lateralis Radix Praeparata) is a traditional Chinese medicine herb used extensively for nourishing yang (regarded as the positive, male universal force), which is critical in treatment of allergic rhinitis. In this paper, FUZI was explored based on network pharmacology. The active components of FUZI were screened out, its protein targets were assessed, and the protein interaction network map was built with the differential protein of allergic rhinitis, as an attempt to determine the critical targets of FUZI for treating allergic rhinitis. Subsequently, DAVID was employed to explore the biological function and pathway enrichment to determine the biological pathway of FUZI for treating allergic rhinitis. As suggested by the results, FUZI is likely to affect the inhibition of inflammation and the regulation of immunity, probably reducing the incidence of allergic rhinitis, or alleviating nasal discomfort attributed to allergic inflammation. The targets and pathways of FUZI for treating allergic rhinitis assessed by network pharmacology provided a direction for our subsequent studies and may be a novel therapeutic target.

Evaluation of the experiences and needs of users of a drug information resources website.

OBJECTIVE: This article describes the evaluation of the experiences and needs of users of the Drug Information Resources (DIR) website. The DIR website attracts traffic and use from around the world, with the highest number of users in Canada and the United States. METHODS: An online questionnaire was developed through use of a literature review and Google Analytics data. Face validity testing and test-retest reliability were completed prior to releasing the questionnaire. RESULTS: Although the Google Analytics data showed that the site is used internationally, most respondents were Canadian students. They used the site for academic and clinical purposes and reported it was easy to use, was well organized, and included required resources, and they would recommend it to others. CONCLUSION: The DIR website was found to be a valuable resource for educational and clinical use. Future studies will aim to obtain input from international users.

Evaluation of drug information resources for interactions between therapeutic drugs and drugs of abuse.

OBJECTIVE: The study evaluated point-of-care resources for scope, completeness, and consistency of information describing interactions between therapeutic drugs and drugs of abuse (DoA). METHODS: A cross-sectional evaluation study was conducted focusing on seven resources: Clinical Pharmacology, Facts & Comparisons eAnswers, Lexicomp Online, Micromedex, Drug Interactions Analysis and Management, Drug Interaction Facts, and Stockley's Drug Interactions. A sample of clinically relevant interactions was developed through review of tertiary literature and resources, and input was solicited from subject matter experts. Entries from each resource for each interaction were evaluated for scope (i.e., whether there was an entry for the interaction); completeness (i.e., whether there was information addressing mechanism; clinical effects, severity, course of action, and level of certainty, described as a median rating on a 5-point scale); and consistency (i.e., whether the information in the resource was similar to the majority) among resources with an entry. RESULTS: Following review by subject matter experts, the final sample contained 159 interactions. Scope scores ranged from 0.6% (Drug Interactions Analysis and Management) to 43.4% (Lexicomp Online). Completeness scores ranged from 2 (interquartile range [IQR] 0 to 3, Stockley's Drug Interactions) to 5 (IQR 5 to 5, Drug Interaction Facts, Micromedex, Facts & Comparisons eAnswers). Consistency scores ranged from 30.8% (Stockley's Drug Interactions) to 87.1% (Clinical Pharmacology) for severity and from 15.4% (Facts & Comparisons eAnswers) to 71.4% (Drug Interaction Facts) for course of action. CONCLUSIONS: Although coverage of drug-DoA interactions was low and content was often inconsistent among resources, the provided information was generally complete.

Implementation and evaluation of medicine and therapeutic information service by clinical pharmacists in oncology care setting.

BACKGROUND: This study was conducted to explore the role of clinical pharmacists in providing medicine and therapeutic information service in oncology care setting. METHODS: It was a prospective study conducted for a period of three years after implementation of medicine and therapeutic information service as an integral part of oncology pharmacy services. The medicine and therapeutic information queries were received during ward rounds, at ambulatory care and via telephone by clinical pharmacists. All the medicine and therapeutic information requests were reviewed and answered to the concerned requester(s). Answered medicine and therapeutic information requests were electronically documented in the hospital drug information database and analyzed further. RESULTS: A total of 484 medicine and therapeutic information requests were received by clinical pharmacists during period of August 2013 to June 2016. Majority of medicine and therapeutic information queries were requested by radiation oncologists (27.2%) followed by medical oncologists (26.4%), general physicians (14.04%), resident medical officers (11.7%), ambulatory care nurses (8.6%), in-patient nurses (5.1%) and patients and care takers (6.6%). Majority of the medicine and therapeutic information queries were asked for the purpose of improving patient care (48.3%) followed by to update knowledge (30.9%) and training sessions to nurses (6.6%). The most common categories of medicine and therapeutic information were adverse drug reactions and its management (21.4%) followed by dosage adjustments of chemotherapy and biologicals (15.5%), supportive care related (14.6%), contraindications (14%), drug-drug interactions (11.9%), management of co-morbidities (7.8%), chemotherapy selection in special populations (4.5%). CONCLUSION: The provision of medicine and therapeutic information was found to be useful in providing medicine information to improve patient care and to update knowledge of health care professionals at the study hospital.

Drug information centres and their provision of decision support: The Scandinavian experience.

WHAT IS KNOWN AND OBJECTIVE: Appraisal of drug information centres (DICs) is mainly by word of mouth communication and surveys of overall user satisfaction. Efforts to study the impact of this type of informatics and decision support systematically are generally lacking within the healthcare system. COMMENT: Scandinavian DICs question-answering databases are relevant sources for identifying recurring problems in pharmacotherapy, including drug safety questions, and for re-use of previous answers. Recent studies in this setting have shown that high-quality answers demand easily accessible literature sources, skills in literature search and critical assessment of the retrieved documentation. Furthermore, patient-specific advice in clinical cases presented within a requested time frame is appraised by clinicians. WHAT IS NEW AND CONCLUSIONS: Effective decision support by Scandinavian DICs depends on skills among staff and technological resources. Our experience could motivate further studies investigating methods and evaluating the impact of DICs in the healthcare system.

Evaluation of drug information resources for drug-ethanol and drug-tobacco interactions.

OBJECTIVE: The research evaluated point-of-care drug interaction resources for scope, completeness, and consistency in drug-ethanol and drug-tobacco content. METHODS: In a cross-sectional analysis, 2 independent reviewers extracted data for 108 clinically relevant interactions using 7 drug information resources (Clinical Pharmacology Drug Interaction Report, Facts & Comparisons eAnswers, Lexicomp Interactions, Micromedex Drug Interactions, Drug Interactions Analysis and Management, Drug Interaction Facts, and Stockley's Drug Interactions). Scope (presence of an entry), completeness (content describing mechanism, clinical effects, severity, level of certainty, and course of action for each present interaction; up to 1 point per assessed item for a total possible score of 5 points), and consistency (similarity among resources) were evaluated. RESULTS: Fifty-three drug-ethanol and 55 drug-tobacco interactions were analyzed. Drug-ethanol interaction entries were most commonly present in Lexicomp (84.9%), Clinical Pharmacology (83.0%), and Stockley's Drug Interactions (73.6%), compared to other resources (p<0.05). Drug-tobacco interactions were more often covered in Micromedex (56.4%), Stockley's Drug Interactions (56.4%), Drug Interaction Facts (43.6%), and Clinical Pharmacology (41.8%) (p<0.001). Overall completeness scores were higher for Lexicomp, Micromedex, Drug Interaction Facts, and Facts & Comparisons (median 5/5 points, interquartile range [IQR] 5 to 5, p<0.001) for drug-ethanol and for Micromedex (median 5/5 points, IQR 5 to 5, p<0.05) for drug-tobacco, compared to other resources. Drug Interaction Facts and Micromedex were among the highest scoring resources for both drug-ethanol (73.7%, 68.6%) and drug-tobacco (75.0%, 32.3%) consistency. CONCLUSIONS: Scope and completeness were high for drug-ethanol interactions, but low for drug-tobacco interactions. Consistency was highly variable across both interaction types.

Evaluating the Managing Medicines for People With Dementia Website Version 2.

The Managing Medicines for People With Dementia version 2 website was developed in three languages, English, Italian, and Macedonian, to assist informal caregivers in the task of managing medications. Medication management is a complex task with potentially high stakes health outcomes, including hospitalization and death. A mixed-methods evaluation was carried out. A survey was available to site users and Web log data were collected over a 3-month period. Subsequently, the quality and suitability of the information and readability and usability of the Web site were evaluated. Focus groups and interviews were conducted with end users from all three language groups. Data collected from the evaluation surveys during the pilot test showed that users were generally satisfied with site usability (77%). The results of the readability testing indicate that future versions could be improved. Feedback from the focus groups and interviews was generally positive. The use of multiple methodologies provided comprehensive testing that is likely to have identified the majority of usability issues. Ways in which the site can be maintained with up-to-date information and be promoted to the target population, informal carers, need to be explored.

Usefulness of medication instruction sheets for sharing information on cancer chemotherapy within the health care team.

Patients receiving cancer chemotherapy may experience a number of potentially severe adverse drug reactions. It is crucial for all members of the health care team to monitor the effect of medicines on the patient to ensure the safety and efficacy of the chemotherapy. The present study prepared medication instruction sheets (MISs) on hematological malignancy and conducted a questionnaire survey to verify their usefulness among physicians, dentists, and nurses. MISs were prepared for 103 chemotherapy and 44 pretreatment regimens for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in the Department of Hematology at Kyushu University Hospital. Eight questions were prepared to investigate whether MISs could help physicians, dentists, and nurses manage cancer chemotherapy more safely, effectively, and efficiently, as well as in the sharing of information. A total of 35 medical staff working in inpatient wards, including 8 physicians, 3 dentists, and 24 nurses, participated in the questionnaire survey. All of the staff responded to the questionnaire survey, which showed that the MISs were favorably accepted by the participants. There was no negative opinion on the management of chemotherapy using the MISs. The MIS was a useful tool for sharing information on cancer chemotherapy between patients and medical staff and for enabling efficient management, thereby improving the safety and efficacy of treatment.

An open invitation to join HILJ [Journal] Club.

Journal clubs are an effective means to increase skills in handling evidence and support the continuing professional development of library and knowledge services workers. This editorial examines the progression of HILJ Club, an online journal club, from an idea to the launch of a dedicated platform. One article is selected per issue of the Health Information and Libraries Journal with an open discussion invited following a brief summary and reflections by a host. Participation in HILJ Club is growing. Future success is reliant on wider engagement, and an invitation is extended to join in the discussions or even host an edition.

Impact of pharmacy medicine information service advice on clinician and patient outcomes: an overview.

BACKGROUND: Pharmacy-led medicine information (MI) services are available in many countries to support clinicians and patients make decisions on use of medicines. OBJECTIVES: To establish what impact, if any, pharmacy-led MI services have on clinician and patient outcomes. METHODS: All published works indexed in Embase or PubMed, meeting this review's inclusion and exclusion criteria, that wholly or partially attempted to measure the effects of MI advice were retrieved and assessed. RESULTS: Twenty studies were reviewed. Five broad themes were identified describing study findings, three were specific to clinicians: their views on the effect MI answers had; actions they took; and influence on their decision making. A fourth theme centred on patient utilisation of advice, and the fifth on 'process measures' attempting to determine MI worth. DISCUSSION: Studies report on positive patient outcomes as a direct result of MI advice. Clinicians and patients acted upon the advice provided. Clinicians also reported using MI advice as a 'safety net', to check, reassure or confirm what to do. MI advice also demonstrated economic worth, although these studies are old. CONCLUSION: MI Service advice appears to affect clinician and patient outcomes. However, study design limitations require findings be viewed cautiously.

Physicians' questions concerning drug use among older patients: experience from Norwegian drug information centres (RELIS) in the period 2010-2015.

Questions from physicians to regional medicines information and pharmacovigilance centres in Norway (RELIS) concerning older patients were described. Question-answer pairs (QAPs) from the RELIS database indexed with the category "older", and concerning individual patients from the period 01 Jan 2010 to 31 Dec 2015, were analysed. Two-hundred and eight QAPs categorized with "older" were retrieved from a total of 16 710 in the study period, and 122 of 208 QAPs fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The most common categories of drugs in question (n = 228) according to the ATC system were N: Nervous system (30.3%) and C: Cardiovascular system (23.7%). Questions from physicians (n = 122) were most frequently about adverse effects (41.8%) and treatment (39.3%). The majority of questions to RELIS concerning older patients came from general practice (GP). The results suggest drug information efforts to GPs in care of older patients with regard to psychopharmacology and cardiovascular pharmacology.

A comparison of the content and primary literature support for online medication information provided by Lexicomp and Wikipedia.

OBJECTIVES: The research compared the comprehensiveness and accuracy of two online resources that provide drug information: Lexicomp and Wikipedia. METHODS: Medication information on five commonly prescribed medications was identified and comparisons were made between resources and the relevant literature. An initial content comparison of the following three categories of medication information was performed: dose and instructions, uses, and adverse effects or warnings. The content comparison included sixteen points of comparison for each of the five investigated medications, totaling eighty content comparisons. For each of the medications, adverse reactions that appeared in only one of the resources were identified. When primary, peer-reviewed literature was not referenced supporting the discrepant adverse reactions, a literature search was performed to determine whether or not evidence existed to support the listed claims. RESULTS: Lexicomp consistently provided more medication information, with information provided in 95.0% (76/80) of the content, compared to Wikipedia's 42.5% (34/80). Lexicomp and Wikipedia had information present in 91.4% (32/35) and 20.0% (7/35) of dosing and instructions content, respectively. Adverse effects or warning content was provided in 97.5% (39/40) of Lexicomp content and 55.0% (22/40) of Wikipedia content. The "uses" category was present in both Lexicomp and Wikipedia for the 5 medications considered. Of adverse reactions listed solely in Lexicomp, 191/302 (63.2%) were supported by primary, peer-reviewed literature in contrast to 7/7 (100.0%) of adverse reactions listed only in Wikipedia. A review of US Food and Drug Administration Prescribing Information and the Adverse Event Reporting System dashboard found support for a respective 17/102 (16.7%) and 92/102 (90.2%) of Lexicomp's adverse reactions that were not supported in the literature. CONCLUSION: Lexicomp is a comprehensive medication information tool that contains lists of adverse reactions that are not entirely supported by primary-peer reviewed literature.

Incompatibilities in paediatric intensive care - pitfalls in drug information.

Drug incompatibilities can lead to loss of effectiveness of drugs or to increased risk for undesirable effects that can even be life-threatening. Especially children are at high risk. Databases are an important source of information in routine care to avoid incompatibilities. However, they were supposedly developed considering drugs for use in adults. Thus, we analysed to what extent databases are appropriate for the identification of incompatibilities in intravenous (i.v.) drug therapy in paediatric intensive care. We analysed the information provided by two databases (Database A and B) on all pairs of two drugs prescribed to be administered via the same i.v. access line in a university paediatric intensive care unit during the study period of 50 days. A total of 50 different i.v. drugs was prescribed in 318 different combinations (drug pairs). We found information on (in)compatibilities in 23.0 % (73/318) in Database A and in 31.1 % (99/318) in Database B. Only in 11.0 % (35/318) of the drug pairs, both databases provided information. Considering those drug pairs, in 17.1 % (6/35) Database B indicated compatibility whereas Database A indicated incompatibility. Compatibility information delivered by databases on drugs used in paediatric intensive care is incomplete, heterogeneous, and partly contradictory. Thus, an increased awareness on the strengths and limitations of different databases is necessary to avoid patient harm.

Knowledge and practice characteristics of pharmacists in Qatar towards medication use in pregnancy: a cross-sectional survey.

BACKGROUND: Medication use during pregnancy is common. Pharmacists have an important role in improving medication use during pregnancy. There is a lack of empirical evidence on pharmacists' knowledge and practice characteristics towards medication use in pregnancy. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to determine the knowledge and practice characteristics of pharmacists in Qatar about medicines use in pregnancy. METHODS: A cross-sectional, questionnaire-based study was conducted over a period of 6 months in 2010. Questionnaires were distributed to 400 of 800 licensed pharmacists employed in Qatar (in government and private sectors). Data were collected on: demographics and practice characteristics of the pharmacists; their knowledge and perception about medication use in pregnancy; their confidence in dealing with pregnant women and physicians; and their source of the drug information. RESULTS: Of the 400 questionnaires distributed, 207 were returned (52% response rate). Most pharmacists (71%) had not participated in any educational activities on medication use in pregnancy. About 50% reported that < 10% of their workload involved dispensing medications to pregnant women. A lack of available resources and unknown pregnancy status were the main concerns about dispensing medication to pregnant women. The majority of the respondents had average knowledge about medication use in pregnancy. There was a significant association between knowledge, and continuing education and years of experience (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Pharmacists in Qatar had an average level of knowledge about medications use in pregnancy. Continuous educational programmes are needed for pharmacists in Qatar to enhance their knowledge and practice of medicine use during pregnancy.