TY - JOUR
T1 - When Direct Health-Care Professional Communications Have an Impact on Inappropriate and Unsafe Use of Medicines
AU - Reber, KC
AU - Piening, S
AU - Wieringa, JE
AU - Straus, Sabine
AU - Raine, JM
AU - de Graeff', PA
AU - Haaijer-Ruskamp, FM
AU - Mol, PGM
PY - 2013
Y1 - 2013
N2 - Serious safety issues relating to drugs are communicated to health-care professionals via Direct Health-Care Professional Communications (DHPCs). We explored which characteristics determined the impact of DHPCs issued in the Netherlands for ambulatory-care drugs (2001-2008). With multiple linear regression, we examined the impact on the relative change in new drug use post-DHPC of the following: time to DHPC, trend in use, degree of innovation, specialist drug, first/repeated DHPC, DHPC template, and type of safety issue. DHPCs have less impact on use of specialist drugs than nonspecialist drugs (P < 0.05).The DHPCs' impact increased after availability of a template emphasizing the main problem (P < 0.05), and for safety issues with a risk of death and/or disability (both P < 0.05) (adjusted R-2 = 0.392). Risk communication can be effective, specifically in case of well-structured information, and very serious safety issues. Effectiveness may improve by tailoring DHPCs and adding other communication channels, for example for drugs that are increasingly being used.
AB - Serious safety issues relating to drugs are communicated to health-care professionals via Direct Health-Care Professional Communications (DHPCs). We explored which characteristics determined the impact of DHPCs issued in the Netherlands for ambulatory-care drugs (2001-2008). With multiple linear regression, we examined the impact on the relative change in new drug use post-DHPC of the following: time to DHPC, trend in use, degree of innovation, specialist drug, first/repeated DHPC, DHPC template, and type of safety issue. DHPCs have less impact on use of specialist drugs than nonspecialist drugs (P < 0.05).The DHPCs' impact increased after availability of a template emphasizing the main problem (P < 0.05), and for safety issues with a risk of death and/or disability (both P < 0.05) (adjusted R-2 = 0.392). Risk communication can be effective, specifically in case of well-structured information, and very serious safety issues. Effectiveness may improve by tailoring DHPCs and adding other communication channels, for example for drugs that are increasingly being used.
U2 - 10.1038/clpt.2012.262
DO - 10.1038/clpt.2012.262
M3 - Article
SN - 0009-9236
VL - 93
SP - 360
EP - 365
JO - Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics
JF - Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics
IS - 4
ER -