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FDA Consumer Survey Sets Benchmarks For Patient Information Efforts
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FDA Consumer Survey Sets Benchmarks For Patient Information Efforts The Food and Drug Administration has released the preliminary findings of the first in its series of consumer prescription drug information surveys. Utilizing the suggestions of APhA and other healthrelated organizations, the FDA survey was conducted to establish initial reference points so that future polls could chart the effect of various patient information activities now gearing up or underway. The preliminary findings show that: • About 65 % of consumers reported getting oral information about drugs from their physician or someone in the physician's office, while about 37% received oral information from their pharmacist or someone in the pharmacy. The accompanying table provides more detail on the types of information provided. • Consumers are apparently offered oral information much more often than they request it. The FDA figures show that while about 58% of consumers were offered information about "how much medicine to take" and about 22% were informed about "side effects" by the physician or someone in the physician's office, only 2-4% actually re-
quested these types of information while in the physician's office. At the pharmacy, only 22% of consumers reported they were given oral information on "how much medicine to take" and 7% reported being told about "side effects." FDA notes that" only a small percent" requested this information. • About 6% of the consumers said · they were provided with written information on their medication in the physician's office, while about 15% said they were given written information in the pharmacy.
• Consumers reported getting information on drugs from a variety of other sources, too, including friends, relatives and neighbors (14%), reference books (13% ), magazines (4%), newspapers (3 % ), and television (3 % ). The survey was conducted by Chilton Research, Inc., querying consumers age 18 or over who had filled a new prescription for themselves or someone in their household within four weeks of the survey date. A total of 1, 104 persons were actually questioned.
Approximate Percentages of Consumers Who Get Oral Information from Physician or Pharmacist Information about the medicine
Physician or someone in physician's office
Pharmacist
59 61 31 32 26
25 26 15 16
How much to take How often to take it If it can be refilled Precautions Possible side effects
or someone in the pharmacy
11
Both*
19 19 9 9 4
*These percentages are also included in columns on physician and pharmacist.
Rat Strain May Aid Research on Effects of 'Social Drinking 1 Researchers at the University of Texas have discovered the first known strain of rats that appear to be stimulated by low doses of alcohol-a finding that may help in the search for drugs to counteract the effects of "social drinking" in humans. Rats used in previous research have become sedated with even the smallest amounts of alcohol, but one-the Maudsley-reactive strainhas shown increased activity. Though alcohol is a depressant, it has long been observed to have a 20
stimulating effect, particularly in small amounts associated with social drinking. "We don't know why alcohol acts as a stimulant," said Dr. Carlton Erickson, professor of pharmacology and assistant director of the Drug Dynamics Institute. "It appears that alcohol blocks actions of a part of the brain that normally holds the brain in check." By studying the behavior of rats that appear to respond to the effects of social drinking in the same way as humans, "We can study the
mechanisms by which people get stimulated," Erickson said. Tests on the Maudsley-reactive rats will include the use of various drugs whose mechanisms are well known. For example, if a drug is known to alter one neurotransmitter, and that drug blocks or increases the stimulative effect caused by alcohol, then researchers may be able to conclude tha t alcohol is acting through a change in that particular neurotransmitter.
American Pharmacy Vol. NS23, No. 1, January 1983/20
FDA Consumer Survey Sets Benchmarks For Patient Information Efforts The Food and Drug Administration has released the preliminary findings of the first in its series of consumer prescription drug information surveys. Utilizing the suggestions of APhA and other healthrelated organizations, the FDA survey was conducted to establish initial reference points so that future polls could chart the effect of various patient information activities now gearing up or underway. The preliminary findings show that: • About 65 % of consumers reported getting oral information about drugs from their physician or someone in the physician's office, while about 37% received oral information from their pharmacist or someone in the pharmacy. The accompanying table provides more detail on the types of information provided. • Consumers are apparently offered oral information much more often than they request it. The FDA figures show that while about 58% of consumers were offered information about "how much medicine to take" and about 22% were informed about "side effects" by the physician or someone in the physician's office, only 2-4% actually re-
quested these types of information while in the physician's office. At the pharmacy, only 22% of consumers reported they were given oral information on "how much medicine to take" and 7% reported being told about "side effects." FDA notes that" only a small percent" requested this information. • About 6% of the consumers said · they were provided with written information on their medication in the physician's office, while about 15% said they were given written information in the pharmacy.
• Consumers reported getting information on drugs from a variety of other sources, too, including friends, relatives and neighbors (14%), reference books (13% ), magazines (4%), newspapers (3 % ), and television (3 % ). The survey was conducted by Chilton Research, Inc., querying consumers age 18 or over who had filled a new prescription for themselves or someone in their household within four weeks of the survey date. A total of 1, 104 persons were actually questioned.
Approximate Percentages of Consumers Who Get Oral Information from Physician or Pharmacist Information about the medicine
Physician or someone in physician's office
Pharmacist
59 61 31 32 26
25 26 15 16
How much to take How often to take it If it can be refilled Precautions Possible side effects
or someone in the pharmacy
11
Both*
19 19 9 9 4
*These percentages are also included in columns on physician and pharmacist.
Rat Strain May Aid Research on Effects of 'Social Drinking 1 Researchers at the University of Texas have discovered the first known strain of rats that appear to be stimulated by low doses of alcohol-a finding that may help in the search for drugs to counteract the effects of "social drinking" in humans. Rats used in previous research have become sedated with even the smallest amounts of alcohol, but one-the Maudsley-reactive strainhas shown increased activity. Though alcohol is a depressant, it has long been observed to have a 20
stimulating effect, particularly in small amounts associated with social drinking. "We don't know why alcohol acts as a stimulant," said Dr. Carlton Erickson, professor of pharmacology and assistant director of the Drug Dynamics Institute. "It appears that alcohol blocks actions of a part of the brain that normally holds the brain in check." By studying the behavior of rats that appear to respond to the effects of social drinking in the same way as humans, "We can study the
mechanisms by which people get stimulated," Erickson said. Tests on the Maudsley-reactive rats will include the use of various drugs whose mechanisms are well known. For example, if a drug is known to alter one neurotransmitter, and that drug blocks or increases the stimulative effect caused by alcohol, then researchers may be able to conclude tha t alcohol is acting through a change in that particular neurotransmitter.
American Pharmacy Vol. NS23, No. 1, January 1983/20