OBJECTIVE To assess the influence of pharmacists' opinions on their dispensing medicines with a "medical prescription only" label without requiring a doctor's prescription. METHODS We performed a cross-sectional study of 166 community pharmacies in northwest Spain. The opinions of pharmacists on the following were collected as independent variables through personal interview: a) physicians' p...

Objective: To assess the influence of pharmacists’ opinions on their dispensing medicines with a «medical prescription only» label without requiring a doctor’s prescription. Methods: We performed a cross-sectional study of 166 community pharmacies in northwest Spain. The opinions of pharmacists on the following were collected as independent variables through personal interview: a) physicians’ p...

OBJECTIVES To describe benzodiazepine and prescription opioid use by clients of drug treatment services and the sources of pharmaceuticals they use. DESIGN Structured face-to-face interviews on unsanctioned use of benzodiazepines and prescription opioids were conducted between January and July 2008. PARTICIPANTS Convenience sample of treatment entrants who reported regular (an average of ≥ ...

 Background: As a major responsibility, health authorities must control rational prescription of drugs (RUD). A way to analyze the regional status of drug prescription is the WHO’s recommended indices. The purpose of the study was to determine the status of drug prescriptions in pharmacies of healthcare centers under the authority of Tehran University of Medical Sciences based on the WHO indice...

Medical prescription has been touted as following an accurate approach to addressing particular health problems. However, the importance of the process might demand considering a formal knowledge-driven procedure to ensure its correctness which can be achieved through Medical Decision Support Systems (MDSS). Semantic Technologies have emerged as a potential silver bullet to become the backbone ...

nies include Magellan Health Services, Inc.; Beacon Health Strategies, Inc.; and Value Options. Among the interim final rule dictates that Magellan has protested is its application of parity to prescription drugs. Tony Kotin, MD, Chief Medical Officer at Magellan, says that including prescription drugs as one of the six mandated classifications was completely unanticipated and goes well beyond ...

This article examines the conceptually desirable attributes of a fully quality-adjusted prescription drug price index. It provides an understanding of how the Consumer Price Index for prescription drugs and medical supplies treats quality changes in prescription drugs and, in particular, quality changes associated with the introduction of new drugs.

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to use a signal detection method to examine the prevalence of, and patient characteristics associated with, medication with potential to impair cognition and cholinesterase inhibitor use in patients with Alzheimer's disease. METHODS A cross-sectional study was conducted of 1,954 patients with a diagnosis of probable or possible Alzheimer's disease. Concurr...

Objective To evaluate current opioid prescribing patterns nationally and regionally across several northern New England states and compare with prescription data on an institutional level over a two-year period, between 2013 and 2014. Design, Setting, and Subjects The IMS Health National Prescription Audit (NPA) database was used to obtain prescription data from US retail pharmacies between 2...