Reporting of adverse drug reactions in England could be transformed by systematic collection through the National Programme for IT, according to the British Medical Association.
The association’s new report, Reporting Adverse Drug Reactions: a guide for health professionals, says that the National Programme for IT (NPfIT) represents a “significant opportunity” to systematically gather information on adverse drug reactions (ADRs) and improve pharmacovigilance.
It recommends that collection of ADR data should form part of the Secondary Uses Services (SUS) of NPfIT and that similar mechanisms for capturing ADR data should be developed in the devolved nations.
The report says that the technology office of Connecting for Health has been in discussions with the government’s medicines safety agency, Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency about ways in which electronic yellow cards can be incorporated into the programme.
Discussions have also looked at interaction between the General Practice Research Database (GPRD) and the SUS. The GPRD is the world’s largest database of anonymised longitudinal medical records from primary care with more than 300 practices currently registered and 35 million patient years of validated data.
The report adds: “In relation to the GPRD a broader discussion about the capture of primary care data is anticipated, while prescription data should be brought into the SUS when the electronic transmission of prescriptions is rolled out, starting in early 2007.”
The report estimates that at least a quarter of a million people each year are admitted to hospital with an ADR at a cost of £466 million a year.
The report says that ADRs continue to be significantly under-reported in the UK and calls on health professionals to ensure ADRs are reported. It says clinicians should not be deterred by the recently introduced facility for patients to report ADRs through the yellow card scheme.
The BMA has also recommended that prescribers routinely ask patients about OTC medicines or herbal remedies which it says are a significant cause of ADRs.
The report found that GPs have traditionally submitted the highest proportion of yellow cards, approximately 60%, but in recent years the number of reports submitted by GPs has been significantly lower. It says that given the high incidence of ADRs in hospitalised patients, hospital doctors could make a greater contribution to ADR reporting. Reports by nurses and pharmacists have increased.
Dr Vivienne Nathanson, Head of BMA Ethics and Science, said doctors have a duty to report all ADRs. She added: “Unfortunately too many health professionals are confused about reporting procedures. Doctors must make sure they report any suspected ADR and at the same time increase awareness among their patients about the reporting process.”
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MHRA to let patients report side effects online