Drug Information: A Guide for Pharmacists

1
Drug Information A Guide for PharmacistsgtChapt
er 4. Drug Information Resourcesgt
INTRODUCTION The quantity of medical information a
nd medical literature available is growing at an
astounding rate. The technology by which this
information can be accessed is also improving
exponentially. The introduction of PDAs and
Internet resources has to some extent changed the
methods by which information is accessed, but not
the process of providing drug information.
Pharmacists are being asked daily to provide
responses to numerous drug information requests
for a variety of people. It is tempting just to
select the easiest, most familiar resources to
find information however, by doing that there is
the possibility of missing new resources or
limiting the comprehensiveness of the information
found. It is for these reasons that the
systematic approach discussed in is helpful in
order to streamline the search process.
Generally, the best method to find information
includes a stepwise approach moving first through
tertiary (e.g., textbooks, full-text databases,
and review articles), then secondary (e.g.,
indexing or abstracting service), and finally
primary (e.g., clinical studies) literature. The
tertiary sources will provide the practitioner
with general information needed to familiarize
the reader with the topic. If this information is
not recent or comprehensive enough, a secondary
database may be employed to direct the reader to
review primary literature articles that might
provide more insight on the topic. Primary
literature often provides the most recent and
in-depth information about a topic, and allows
the reader to analyze and critique