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Quality of Pharmacotherapy Consultations Provided by Drug Information Centers in the United States
Author(s) -
Calis Karim Anton,
Anderson Dallas W.,
Auth Doris A.,
Mays David A.,
Turcasso Nannette M.,
Meyer Christine C.,
Young Linda R.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
pharmacotherapy: the journal of human pharmacology and drug therapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.227
H-Index - 109
eISSN - 1875-9114
pISSN - 0277-0008
DOI - 10.1592/phco.20.9.830.35193
Subject(s) - didanosine , dapsone , medicine , ranitidine , erythromycin , drug , pharmacotherapy , pharmacology , omeprazole , intensive care medicine , drug interaction , family medicine , dermatology , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , antibiotics , chemistry , biochemistry , viral load , antiretroviral therapy
We evaluated the performance of 116 U.S. drug information centers in responding to specific questions about drugs. The primary measures were correctness of responses and extent of probing for patient data. Questions addressed the effect of ranitidine on blood alcohol concentrations, the potential interaction between didanosine and dapsone, prevention of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug (NSAID)‐induced peptic ulcers, and use of erythromycin for diabetic gastroparesis. The percentages of centers providing correct overall responses were 70% for the ranitidine question, 90% for the didanosine‐dapsone question, 8% for the NSAID question, and 20% for the erythromycin question. For the three patient‐specific questions, the percentages of centers eliciting vital patient data were 27% for the didanosine‐dapsone question, 86% for the NSAID question, and 5% for the erythromycin question. In providing pharmacotherapy consultations, drug information centers generally failed to obtain pertinent patient data, thereby risking incorrect responses and inappropriate recommendations.