How to answer drug information queries?

1. Systematic approach in answering medicine
information queries
Presented by: Anukrati Agnihotri
Presented to: Dr. Nidhi Agrawal

2. Answering drug information queries
 Drug information enquiries reflect circumstances which are unusual and beyond the scope of
average patients and situations.
 In clinical practice, physicians encounter more complicated patients and may need to use drugs
beyond the approved indications and dosage.
The nature of enquiry may differ and depend on scope of drug information service.
 However, clinical service is likely to be asked about efficacy, therapeutic strategies, dosage and
administration adverse reactions, interactions, use in paediatrics and the elderly, and safety of drugs
during pregnancy or breastfeeding.

3. Steps involved in approaching DI queries-
1.Secure demographic details of the requester-
 Identify the enquirer and obtain sufficient contact details
 Requester’s profession (like physician, pharmacist, nurse, lay person) to know education, experience
and knowledge base.
2. Obtain background information- General questions for obtaining background information includes:
 The resources that the requestor already consulted
 Whether the request is patient specific or academic
 The patient diagnosis, medications and pertinent medical information
 The urgency of the request.

4. 3. Refine and categorize the ultimate question-
 Classification of the request helps in developing a more effective search strategy and in
determining rhe resources that should be used.
This information may help to refine the question and to estimate the time required to achieve an
acceptable response.
Question can be classified on the basis of:
Adverse drug reaction/ contraindication
Availability
Dose
Drug compatibility/ stability
Drug interaction
Drug therapy
Drug identification

5. 4. Develop a strategy and conduct a search-
The pharmacist should consider all available information resources and prioritize resources based
on the probability of locating the desired information.
Conduct a systematic search:
 Be familiar with the three types of information sources in the literature hierarchy
 Begin with the established knowledge located within the tertiary literature (e.g., textbooks) due to
the condensed, easy to use format of the information presented
 Progress through the secondary literature (e.g., PubMed, International pharmaceutical abstracts
(IPA)) to the primary literature

6. 5. Interpret the data-
 The pharmacist should confirm information with other references to assure consistency between
various resources and whether clinical research is relevant to other population or specific patient
 The pharmacist should apply his/ her techniques and skills for literature evaluation and clinical
application for statistical analysis
6. Formulate and provide a response-
 Answers should be derived only after critically analyzing information obtained from comprehensive
search.
 Provide a formulated response to the enquirer in a timely manner.
 Present the competing viewpoints along with the reference
 All responses should be documented with the minimum detail necessary to justify the response.

7. 7. Conduct follow-up and document the outcome-
 Determine the consequence of your advise and any patient outcomes
 Advise provided should be recorded in atleast one mode of documentation (i.e., log book, paper
worksheet, computer database)
8. Quality assurance-
 QA can be assessed in terms of resources and operating procedures.
 It is necessary to maintain up-to-date references and search strategies.

10. References
1.https://www.researchgate.net/publication/24248672_Responding_to_drug_information_requ
ests
2. Parthasarathi, G., Nyfort-Hansen, K., & Nahata, M. C. (2012). A text book of Clinical Pharmacy practice:
Essential Concepts and Skills. Orient Blackswan.