Prescription Drug Information Project

Publication Date: November 2006

Publisher: California HealthCare Foundation

Author(s):

Research Area: Health

Type: Brief

Abstract:

Consumers and medical practitioners face increasingly complex choices about the prescription drugs they use and prescribe. Direct-to-consumer advertising; changes in prescription drug benefits; the rising cost of prescription drugs; and discount programs available for Medicare recipients are causing significant confusion among consumers and clinicians. In this shifting environment, consumers need to become more-informed purchasers of prescription drugs and prescribers need decision-support tools to ensure that prescriptions are written with an understanding of the evidence on available treatments -- including pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical interventions. The Prescription Drug Information Project (PDIP) aims to provide evidence-based, easily accessible information on effectiveness, side effects, and costs to help clinicians and patients select the best drug or treatment at the best price. PDIP is a collaboration between the University of California (UC) at Davis and the California HealthCare Foundation. Project Outcomes The UC team has performed scientific reviews of the treatment options for common health conditions based on the evidence gathered by UC pharmacists and physicians, as well as publicly available evidence reports prepared by the Drug Evaluation Review Project (DERP, run by the Center for Evidence-Based Policy at Oregon Health and Science University). Summary conclusions are vetted by a scientific review panel consisting of doctors and pharmacists from the University of California and by nationally recognized experts in the condition-specific areas. These summaries can be used on their own or can be used as the basis for others to develop their own materials specifically tailored to, and appropriate for, their individual constituencies.