Healthy Skepticism Library item: 10270

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: Journal Article

Harada K, Yamazaki S, Arakawa M, Fujimura A.
Survey of the attitudes of pharmacists and medical reprsentative toward drug interactions in daily practice
Japanese Journal of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics 1999; 30:(6):783-791

Abstract:

Using a questionnaire, we investigated the attitudes of pharmacists and medical representatives (MRs) towards drug interactions in daily practice. We received replies from pharmacists of 79 pharmacies and MRs of 27 pharmaceutical companies. The following results were obtained: 1) It is not rare for pharmacists to actually encounter prescriptions that can cause harmful drug interactions in daily practice. 2) However, 44% of the pharmacists have not decided precisely how to handle with such prescriptions. 3) Of the pharmacists, 44% give information about drug interactions to physicians. 4) About 70% of the MRs give more information about drug interactions to physicians and pharmacists than before. 5) About 60% of the pharmaceutical companies have prepared booklets or leaflets about drug interactions, however, there is still need for improvement of the contents. These results indicate that it is necessary for pharmacists, and pharmaceutical companies and their MRs to provide physicians with more and better information about drug interactions and to take concrete measures to cope with the prescriptions that can cause harmful drug interactions in daily practice.