The Drug Information Centre (DIC) at the Bowring & Lady Curzon Hospital, which was set up early October 2003, will finally get its Internet connection and a library, by next fortnight after a delay of seven months. The hospital, which is a prime teaching hospital attached to the Government Bangalore Medical College, had become the second centre in the State to set up the DIC after Victoria Hospital, the other government teaching medical facility in the State, but it was functioning without the mandatory Internet facility and library all these days.

Although efforts were on from the office of the medical superintendent, Bowring & Lady Curzon Hospital, since the DIC's establishment in early October 2003, there have been inordinate delays in setting up the Internet facility and the library. However, Dr. P.M. Shetty, Medical Superintendent, Bowring & Lady Curzon Hospital who had taken the initiative and approached the Karnataka Pharmacy Council to help establish a sophisticated Drug Information Centre in its premises, told Pharmabiz.com that sanctions for Internet and library would be received within a fortnight.

All that is required for an Internet is a dedicated phone line, which should not be a problem. Even if the sanction for a dedicated library for the DIC does not come though, all efforts to upgrade the existing library in the premises of the hospital will be done to help the DIC serve its enquiries.

The library and an Internet access are indispensable for DICs and the lack of it delays information dissemination. In order to be a resourceful centre, both the library and internet are vital for speedy accessibility and generation exhaustive data about drugs.

In December 2003, the DIC at Bowring has been was instrumental in setting up the Drugs & Therapeutics committee. It is actively engaged in the assessment of drug requirements for the 650-bed Bowring hospital. In addition, it is also regularly engaged in providing a non-essential drug list apart from ensuring the adequate maintenance of the essential drugs in the pharmacy of the facility.

"The provision of unbiased drug information is the key objective of DIC at Bowring to improve the rational use of drugs. We provide unbiased drug information, poison information, monitoring of adverse drug reaction and patient counselling, which will provide a complete pharmaceutical care to the patients", said GK Sheshagiri, head, Drug Information Centre, Bowring & Lady Curzon Hospital. The DIC also discourages the use of combination drug therapy for vitamins, antibiotics and analgesics, which is widespread practise among many doctors, he added.

DIC at Bowring caters to the needs of the hospital doctors, medical researchers and students besides providing assistance whenever required to private medical practitioners. Assistance is also taken from Karnataka Pharmacy Council which has been providing database wherever necessary.

The DIC at Bowring which is an initiative by the Karnataka State Pharmacy Council was inaugurated by CK Jaffer Sharief, Member of Parliament on October 2, 2003. Prof. BG Shivananda, president, Karnataka Pharmacy Council extended the infrastructure support like computer, database, furniture etc.

As a precursor to setting up the facility at Bowring, the Karnataka Pharmacy Council, conducted a two-day training programme to facilitate easy handling of the queries by the hospital pharmacists and doctors at the hospital. The training sessions held in early September 2003 was conducted by PK Lakshmi, dy director, Drug Information Centre, Karnataka State Pharmacy Council and covered Drug Information, Drugs & Therapeutic Committee, ADR Monitoring, Poison Information, Basics of Computer and Internet.