Drug Information and Research Center (DIRC) Services

Drug Information is the provision of written and/ or verbal information or advice about drugs and drug therapy in response to a request from other healthcare providers, organization, patients or members of the public.
Drug Information Services
Provision of Drug Information is a fundamental responsibility of all PHARMACISTS
  • To provide authenticate, unbiased drugs information to health care professionals
  • To provide tailor-made (individualized), accurate counselling and drug information to patients/lay public.
  • To educate pharmacy students to serve as effective providers of medicines information.
  • To monitor and document adverse drug reactions.
  • To promote patient care through rational use of medicines.

The KSPC DIC aims at becoming a nationwide centre of excellence in the provision of drug information, training and related research.

The Drug Information Center serves a broad community of health care professionals, including the pharmaceutical industry, health policy makers, hospital administrators, researchers and practicing clinicians. The DIC offers information services like:

  • Drug Therapy of Choice - Current and alternative therapy recommendations based on literature analysis and patient data are provided.
  • Adverse Drug Reactions - Suspected adverse drug reactions are assessed. Specific information regarding predisposing factors, relationship to dose or duration of therapy, incidence, clinical manifestations, and management are provided.
  • Evaluation of Drug Reactions - The significance of a drug-drug, drug-food, drug-disease or drug laboratory test interaction is evaluated.
  • Drug Administration - Information regarding drug administration techniques, preferred routes of administration and monitoring parameters for assessing efficacy and toxicity are provided.
  • Foreign Drug Identification - The DIC attempt to identify drugs obtained in other countries. When possible the DIC will provide product composition and US equivalent. An assessment of the efficacy and potential hazards of the product are also given.
  • Designing Dosage Regimens - Information regarding dosing pediatric patients, geriatric patients and other patients with special dosing requirements are provided.
  • Information on new drugs or Drug Profile
  • Banned drugs alert

Basic infrastructure facilities (space for DIC, computers, printer, internet connectivity & furniture) should be borne by the organization.

KSPC can help in both setting up and training resources for DIC: One-week training will be given in technical and administrative issues in provision of drug information at Karnataka State Pharmacy Council, Bangalore.

Computer/ Laptops / printer (2 numbers)
Internet connection (Broadband Unlimited Business plan)
Furniture
Stationeries
Tertiary resources (Reference books) *
Secondary resources (Micromedex - Drug Dex)

One qualified M. Pharm pharmacology / pharmacy practice / Pharm D/ MD pharmacology willing to take up these activities after training from the council.

  • Most of the primary & secondary resources are available free of cost through Internet. Some of the tertiary resources (ref. Books).
  • Drugdex database (complete full text drug information on more than 10,000 drugs which provides unbiased drug information collected from various sources and updated every quarterly).
List of tertiary resources
SL. NO. NAMES OF BOOKS
1. British National Formulary
2. Drug Information: A Guide to Pharmacist
3. Stedman's Electronic Medical Dictionary: Version 7.0 by Stedman's (CD-ROM - Dec 1, 2006)
4. Martindale: The Extra Pharmacopoeia, 1st Edition Reproduction by William Martindale and Wynn West coot (Hardcover - Jun 2008)
5. AHFS Drug Information 2008 (AHFS Drug Information) by American Society of Health-system (Paperback - Jan 31, 2008)
6. Goodman & Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics (Goodman and Gilman's the Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics) by Laurence Brunton, John Lazo, and Keith Parker (Hardcover - Oct 28, 2005)
7. Remington: The Science and Practice of Pharmacy VOL I, II
8. Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, 17th Edition (Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine) by Anthony S. Fauci, Eugene Braun Wald, Dennis L. Kasper, and Stephen L. Hauser (Hardcover - Mar 6, 2008)
9. Pharmacotherapy: A Pathophysiologic Approach (Pharmacotherapy: a Pathophysiologic Approach) by Joseph T. DiPiro, Robert L. Talbert, Gary C. Yee, and Gary R. Matzke (Hardcover - Jun 4, 2008)
10. Drugs in Pregnancy and Lactation: A Reference Guide to Fetal and Neonatal Risk (Solution (Lippincott Williams & Wilkins)) by Gerald G Briggs, Roger K Freeman, and Sumner J Yaffe (Hardcover - April 1, 2008)
11. Advice for the Patient: Drug Information in Lay Language, Volume II: USP DI 2000
12. Meyler's Side Effects of Drugs, Fifteenth Edition:The International Encyclopedia of Adverse Drug Reactions and Interactions 6 Volume Set (Meyler's Side Effects of Drugs) by Jeffrey K. Aronson (Hardcover - Aug 21, 2006)
13. A Manual of Adverse Drug Interactions, Fifth Edition (MANUAL OF ADVERSE DRUG INTERACTIONS) by J.P. Griffin and P.F. D'Arcy (Hardcover - Nov 1, 1997)
14. Handbook on Injectable Drugs by Lawrence A. Trissel (Hardcover - Oct 2006)
15. Ellenhorn’s Medical Toxicology—Diagnosis and Treatment of Human Poisoning
16. Stockley’s Drug Interactions
17. Set of Therapeutic guidelines