The Drug Information Centre (DIC) of Maharashtra State Pharmacy Council (MSPC) is planning to launch the second part of its interactive CD series with drug interaction information on anti ritrovirals (ARVs), anti virals and anti-TB drugs, targeting awareness among healthcare professionals on importance of reporting Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs).
According to DIC sources, the second part of Drug Interaction Checker for Prescriptions (DICP) software in CD is to bring in more efforts from the MSPC to enable the health professionals to detect drug-to-drug interactions in any given prescription. The centre had launched its first DICP software in CD in 2006, covering five therapeutic systems antihypertensive, anti-diabetic, anti-anginals, lipid lowering and antibiotics.
"We are not sure whether somebody else from the country has prepared interactive CD for drug information, but as far as our knowledge, we are the first group to prepare such a comprehensive drug-to-drug information with thousands of brands and corresponding generic drug names database in a CD," said Gurunath Sule, project specialist, DIC.
The second part will cover the two major systems, drugs used to treat HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis, with options for checking the interactions for the medicines in various conditions. The easy-to-use software is loaded with thousands of brands with corresponding generic drug names database, to provide interaction message on screen on request by entering prescription details. The database consists of materials from all the latest and possible reference literature from authentic sources, according to the DIC officials.
The new CD will have additional features like patient counselling tips, information on dietary requirements, storage conditions of various types of drugs, do's and don'ts in ARV drug usage, etc. The centre is also planning to add a list of authorised institutions or organisations in drug information and testing segments including their contact information and the name of the contact person, in order to improve the services through the interactive CD.
The second part of CD is currently, undergoing quality check and will be available through the DIC within two months, said Gurunath. The price for the CD, intended to disseminate drug information among medical and healthcare professionals and pharmacy students, is yet to be decided. He added that, the CDs are not prepared to use as a medical substitution, but only to direct the healthcare professional on the drug-drug interaction.