Drug Brand Name

My colleague,  Matt Bennardo,  recently wrote a blog about discovering alternatives to the traditional providers of drug information data for EMRs and EHRs.  He suggested that HIMSS this year will offer some choices to customers who are desperately looking beyond their few limited choices of the past. 

Lexicomp showed last year at HIMSS and started getting the attention of many EMR companies.  Throughout the course of 2010 this translated into many new customers and strong partnership relationships.

As Matt wrote:

"More EMRs are calling Lexi-Data their “preferred choice” every month
Many of our customers have told us that they’ve made the switch because they found Lexi-Data delivered:

• Better quality information with faster updates and fewer mistakes
• A more clinically relevant focus that their end users valued
• Easier implementation and more powerful functionality
• Superior customer service
• Unique content not available elsewhere, like Lexicomp’s industry-leading Pediatric Dose Range Checking

Lexicomp will be exhibiting at HIMSS 2011 in Orlando, Florida, from February 21 - 23. Stop by for a visit at Booth #6653 and learn more about the choices you have in drug information databases!"

So if you are looking for dosage administration, drug brand and generic names,  therapeutic dosage information, medicine lists,or  pediatric dosing information  for EMRs,  Emergency Room EMRs,  EHRs and HIS systems,  stop by the booth to learn more.

This year at HIMSS should be pretty interesting,  and maybe a bit chaotic and a little unsettling.   Meaningful Use was getting bandied about last year,  but this year it is real,  tangible and around the corner.

Whether you are an  EMR vendor,   EHR manager,   ePrescribing vendor,  or someone else in this dynamic and quickly changing business segment,  you will want to see what it is going on.  One of the areas that is a bit overlooked and undervalued until you have signed a long-term agreement (and it is too late to reconsider)  is in the area of drug database information for clinical decision support. 

The data is important,  but equally important is the relationship with your drug information provider.  Once you make your selection,  you will be "stuck"  with them for a very long time.  Make the right choice.   Obviously,  other areas for evaluation have to do with the level and sophistication of APIs that the vendor has or are under development. 

Pediatric dosage calculations,  drug interaction software,  drug generic name,  drug brand name,  drug classifications,  drug and medicine interactions,  medicine lists,  clinical guidelines,  clinical information systems,  and more,  are all critical areas for consideration.

At HIMSS 2011 there will also be live demonstrations showing how our drug databases can be implemented and customized to meet the various specific needs of EMR vendors. Stop by and see us if you are a current customer or are looking to implement drug information or clinical decision support into your application, booth #6653.

Lexicomp will be attending HIMSS 2011 in Orlando.  This will be a great opportunity for any EMR, Hospital, or Consumer Health Site to visit booth #6653 and learn about our solutions for implementing decision support for drug interactions, duplicate therapy, drug allergies, and dose range checking, as well as drug databases, and patient education information for consumers. 

There are only a few real source providers of drug information that is integrated into various hospital and medical systems.  More and more you are also starting to see this information show up on websites.   Two leading providers are Lexi-Comp and Multum/Cerner.

The are some key things to look for if you have a need for drug information provider.  First,  make sure your vendor is really a partner and works well with you and is responsive to your requests.  It might not sound like much,  but makes all the difference in the world.  Second,  make sure they have effective APIs for you to grab the drug data.   You might think about developing some of this yourself in-house,  but the reality is that some of the requirements become complicated,  and without the APIs it could get quite messy.  For example,  developing the algorithms for drug-drug or drug-allergy interactions.   Third,  make sure they have a solid reputation,  but are not enormous in size.  Otherwise you will get lost in the shuffle.

So if you need drug information such as:  pediatric dosing charts,  clinical guidelines,  drug nomenclature,  dose administration,  drug interactions,   generic and brand drug names,   medicine lists,  drug databases etc,   make sure you work with the right partner.

If you are a physician,  you should be checking into EMR alternatives the allow for eprescribing.  When the mad scramble to comply starts in a year or two,  you don't want to be in the fray.  Not only that,  there will be incentives for those early adopters.  

Check out Lexi-Comp  or Cerner/Multum as possible providers.

More and more EMRs are scrambling around to secure drug data to include their product.  Some of the EMR vendors are looking to do this after they have received certification and some are doing this as part of their certification process.   One area that they might be overlooking involves the APIs (and the concomitant support provided)  that the drug data vendor provides.  Many EMR developers decide they want to do this in-house.  Some decide they want to do this to save money,  while others decide to do this because their IT staff wants to own the entire process.  But there is a problem with this.  Even if they are IT experts,  they are not experts in the management of this drug data.

Whether their EMR product includes drug-drug or drug-allergy interactions,  pediatric dosing charts,  medication or generic brand names,  therapeutic dosages drug classifications, medicine lists,  dosage administration, duplicate therapy,  clinical guidelines,  or more;  the EMR vendor does usually have the internal experience and expertise to manage this information.

You are better off working with your vendor,  whether it be Lexi-Comp,  DoseSpot,  or Cerner/Multum and relying on the APIs they offer.  It will be faster,  less error-prone,  eat up fewer resources and keep more folks in the organization happy.

More and more medical practitioners are using eprescribing as a  means for writing prescriptions.  Why?   First,  because it is more efficient.   Second,  government mandates will soon require that eprescribing be used  to maximize reimbursement.  So how many people are using eprescribing?

According to Surescripts, operator of a national e-prescribing network,  more than 200,000 office-based prescribers in the United States now use electronic prescribing technology.  As part of these eprescribing applications,  the practitioner is expecting robust drug information to be included.   Issues of drug interactions,  therapeutic dosages,  drug nomenclature, pediatric dosing charts,  pediatric dose calculations,  medication brand names,  duplicate drug therapy and more,  are all part of the information that practitioners are looking for when they use an eprescribing tool.

Are you developing an EMR or EHR and need to make sure you have a top source of drug information?   There are actually just a few providers of this information,  including Lexi-Comp and Cerner/Multum.  Make sure you don't wait to the end of your development process to decide which provider you are going with.

It's no surprise that a majority of hospitals aren't ready for the switch to electronic medical records and that the uptake of technology has not been, nor will be, as rapid as the government hopes. 

Although there are billions of dollars available for care facilities to implement new technologies, such as EMRs, clinical decision support systems (CDS), and clinical information systems (CIS), these are often expensive and time consuming up front, requiring implementation and training of already overworked staff.  This process can take from months to years to reach maturity and often does not show significant gains immediately.  Remember, though, the aim is for better standardized patient care and long term efficiencies within the facility.

With all the headaches associated with the implementation of clinical information systems,  take the guesswork out of at least one part of the process and ensure that your EHR vendor is partnered with a reputable drug information provider.  Lexi-Comp provides drug product information that includes drug classifications by brand and generic name, a comprehensive drug interaction database, pediatric dosing calculators, and duplicate therapy checking.

Learn more about Lexi-Comp's drug information.  

There is a lot of EMR,  EHR,  HIS  and HIE development work underway.  It's a mad scramble to complete the work as soon as possible and get into the market and start selling.  Time is money.   What's getting in the way?   Rules and certifications.   Regulations create uncertainty;  especially when there is uncertainty around the regulations.  One of the areas which requires inclusion in the Meaningful Use process deals with drug interactions,  dose administration,  drug classifications,  medicine lists and more.

These drug interaction requirements are likely not in the bailiwick of the EMR and EHR developer.  Why should they be?     There are only a few drug database providers who can supply the data needed to make sure you can get through your drug data certification process.    Lexi-Comp and Multum are two key providers of drug database information.   Dosespot is a growing provider of eprescribing.  Both Dosespot and Lexi-Comp provide top-notch customer service and will help you through the process. 

So if you need more information regarding medicine lists,  drug brand names,  pediatric dosing information,  drug classifications and more,  I would suggest to call any of the companies mentioned above.  They will make your life much easier.

It's been well documented that there exists a worldwide chronic shortage of medical staff.  And according to the World Health Organization, this has indeed become a "crisis."

During this shortage of skilled staff, and especially in light of the considerable reimbursement funds available for technology implementation in hospitals and other care facilities, it makes sense to utilize technology in order to gain as much efficiency as possible within healthcare settings.  Implementation of clinical decision support systems, while expensive, can begin to show benefits almost immediately after implementation and training is complete and will not only increase practitioner efficiency but will also result in considerable long-term savings. 

When evaluating clinical information systems, it's important to ensure that the vendor of choice has a robust drug information resource behind it.  Lexi-Comp offers Lexi-Data, a fully integrated drug database containing drug classifications by medication generic name and brand name, dosage calculators, as well as a comprehensive drug interaction database to flag potential drug interactions and allergies.   

With the recent changes regarding meaningful use of EHR, system vendors are faced with many clinical decision support challenges when developing new software applications.  One such challenge is how to easily integrate a drug interaction database into an existing EHR framework.  

To quickly overcome this obstacle, many EHR vendors are turning to Lexi-Comp for a drug interaction software solution.  Lexi-Comp has a comprehensive drug interaction database concerning drug-drug and drug-food interactions available through our integrated product, Lexi-Data.  Lexi-Data's drug-drug interaction API accepts as an input one or more drugs.  Drugs can be single ingredient agents or multi-ingredient agents and requests for drug interaction checking can be made for either generic drug names or brand names.

To get the drug interaction data that you need with an uncompromising level of customer service, trust Lexi-Comp to deliver.  Contact Lexi-Comp today to learn how you can quickly and easily integrate a drug interaction database into your EHR system.

Well, the term, "Meaningful Use" certainly has become a mantra in the healthcare information community in the last six months.  Just check out the last few blog postings by my colleagues on blog.lexi.com and you'll see what I mean.   It's a mad scramble,  especially among medium to smaller hospitals.  It's like a scrum in rugby.  Groups of people moving in tandem together trying to move the ball forward, with some of them coming out bloody and scratched.

A few of the Meaningful Use areas that don't have to be that difficult to implement deal with drug databases for clinical information systems and various ePrescribing systems.  Much work has already been done in the ePrescribing arena.  Why reinvent the wheel?  For example,  companies like DoseSpot  have developed flexible and customer friendly packages.  ePrescribing is a major component of Meaningful Use so make sure you pick the right vendor.

Integrating drug information databases are a bit more complicated and take more time, but don't make it any more complicated than you need.  There are only three or four well-known vendors who can provide the necessary information,  with Lexi-Comp and Cerner/Multum providing strong options.  You want to look for a vendor that is easy to work with,  has easy-to-use APIs,  is cooperative in developing interoperability structures,  and who provides great value.

All of the vendors should have basic information like  dose administration, drug nomenclature,  pediatric dose calculations,  medication brand names,  drug classifications, drug interaction databases,  therapeutic dosages,  and more.  But the providers are not all the same in their service,  ease of integration, and likelihood for ultimate success.

From the The National Progress Report on E-Prescribing, as seen on the Surescripts site: electronic requests for prescription benefit information grew from 79 million in 2008 to 303 million in 2009---an 284% increase! Prescribers access prescription benefit information using software provided by a vendor that is certified by Surescripts for this service.

To ensure the highest possible patient safety, Lexi-Comp's drug data integration can provide your EMR the core drug data content you need for drug names (brand and generic), updated NDCs, drug interaction checking, drug allergy checking, therapeutic duplication, dose range checking, Schedule II medications and more!

 

There is a mad dash going on right now by EMR and other practice management vendors trying to get certified for the "Meaningful Use" and ePrescribing marketplace through organizations such as Surescript and CCHIT.  It is very chaotic and firms are just not sure what they need to do and how long it will take.  In the areas of drug interaction databases,  medication databases,  medicine lists etc,  it is often wise to find firms that are certified with drug data providers already included such as DoseSpot and Amazing Charts.  It might make your life easier and you'll feel more under control.  Under current circumstances it is better not to reinvent the wheel.

There are a very limited number of drug information suppliers or drug data vendors,  possibly only four.  Two of these are Cerner/Multum and Lexi-Comp.  If you need to select such a vendor or manage your dosage precautions, medication brand names,  medication generic names,  pediatric dose checking, duplicate therapy, ePrescribing. etc, it would be worthwhile calling one of them for guidance.  Doing this sooner rather than later can save a lot of grief. 

Effective CPOEs require common sense, good input from practitioners and meaningful decision trees at the point of care.  The design and implementation of the system is an art,  not a science.

The Leapfrog Group for Patient Safety just released a report on the safety of electronic prescribing (ePrescribing) systems in hospitals(pdf).  In a study of 214 hospitals testing efficacy of their clinical decision support systems using the Leapfrog CPOE Evaluation Tool, the systems, on average, missed half of the routine medication orders and a third of potentially fatal disorders.  From the executive summary:

"For the sake of safe patient care, hospitals must test and monitor their CPOE systems on an ongoing basis to achieve true meaningful use. In addition, vendors and hospitals must collaborate more closely during the pre-implementation and implementation phases to ensure that best practices are shared and followed."

My reading of the report doesn't suggest that progress isn't being made,  but rather that these systems require some  fine touches,  meaningful tweaking,  and important dialog between the end users and the system implementation team to ensure that the system will be utilized in a meaningful way.   To say that routine medication orders were missed doesn't mean the information was not available, it more likely suggests that information wasn't communicated to the end user in a way that was actionable and, equally importantly, avoided alert fatigue.

To minimize these outcomes, it is critical for the developers and designers to work closely with the "real"  end users.   By doing this,  the effectiveness of the system will increase manifold.

It is also critical that flexible drug interaction databases be used as part of the overall CPOE.  This also means that the drug database provider must also be flexible and easy to work with.  Providing easy to use,  but effective,  APIs  is another factor in ensuring a favorable outcome.    There is a lot information under the hood,  from dosage administration,  drug classifications,  drug interactions, pediatric dosing,  generic vs brand medication names,  dose calculators, and so on.   The more effective the tool,  the more likely it will be used properly,  the more likely one will achieve desired outcomes. 

The are only a few providers of drug database information (including Lexi-Comp and Multum/Cerner)  which narrows down assessment choices.    Make sure you consider the endgame before going down the drug data path.