AN ANALYSIS OF DRUG INFORMATION DESIRED BY THE PATIENT - (ARE PATIENTS BEING TOLD EVERYTHING THEY WISH TO KNOW UNDER OBRA-90)

The need for patient package inserts (PPI) has been a controversial is sue for many years. In August 1995, the FDA proposed 'MedGuide', a man datory PPI programme. Recent efforts to educate patients about drug th erapy include the OBRA '90 (Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990) requirement for pharmacists to offer counselling to all patients rece iving prescription drugs. In order to assess if patient information ne eds are being met, an 18-item survey was distributed to 873 patients a t eight randomly selected New Jersey pharmacies until 100 patients had anonymously responded. Seventy-five per cent or more of respondents i ndicated that they received the following information from a health pr ofessional: medication name, reason prescribed, how often to take and duration of therapy. Less than 50% of respondents received information concerning: storage conditions, over-the-counter (OTC) or prescriptio n only (Rx) interactions, what happens to the body if a dose is missed and how to avoid side-effects. Using a five item scale, every item wa s rated as important by at least 60% of respondents. Although informat ion was reaching the majority of patients who responded, there were st ill some gaps between that which they considered to be important and i nformation actually received. Some additional intervention might be be neficial to help to bridge these informational gaps.