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Entry bubble Drug Facts Boxes

By: Colleen | February 18, 2009 | Category: Health

When it comes to dealing with medicine, things can get tricky. Can you take one type of med with another? Does name brand vs. generic medsmake a difference? What if you mix an over-the-counter drug with a prescription?

And to top it off, when you see an ad in a magazine or newspaper, it's accompanied by a full page of fine-print information about the medicine. Who has the time, or the vision, to read all that?

After a study conducted by Dartmouth was released this week, you might find it easier to get the information you need about the medicines you see advertised.

"User-friendly boxes" would replace the direct-to-consumer drug ads you currently see. These concise "drug facts boxes" are quite similar to the nutrition facts found on food items. These boxes will include facts not found in the current summaries like:

  • The year the drug got approval from the Food and Drug Administration
  • How common the side effects were in clinical trials
  • The advantages of the drug over older drugs

Would these new boxes be advantageous to you? Would it influence you to ask your doctor for a specific medicine?

| View Comments [5] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: colleen   drug_facts_boxes   food_and_drug_administration   medicine   prescription  

Comments (5):

blue comment bubble Posted by Dr. Jay on February 18, 2009 at 07:45 AM EST

Sure, It will influence us to ask our doctor for certain medicines.

<a href="http://www.newmedicalcareers.us">Medical Careers</a>

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blue comment bubble Posted by Joan on February 18, 2009 at 07:24 PM EST

It would also be useful if the box also told the consumer if the drug was available as a generic
:o)
Joan

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blue comment bubble Posted by Sylvia Y. on March 04, 2009 at 10:13 PM EST

I do believe simpler labeling can be advantageous as consumers will seemingly have access to more information not previously available. For those brands that implement the "user-friendly boxes" first, this can be a great marketing point. This disclosure of extra information can give consumers the feeling of an additional level of comfort and even power. Comparatively, when consumers feel they know more about one brand than another, the probability they will purchase the comfort brand is higher than the other brand. I personally don't believe the results will differ drastically if the comfort brand is generic or not.

Having said that, once all boxes become "user-friendly", I believe purchasing intention will resume the norm. If the name brand medicine is priced in a reasonable range, most people will gravitate toward purchasing it. When it comes to the personal health of your body, most people are willing to invest more money into the medicines they eat.

Right now, if I was comparing two brands and one presented information in a more appealing way and seemingly provided more information, I would purchase that one over its competitor. That's why companies spend millions every year refining branding and remodeling product packaging.

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blue comment bubble Posted by Susie on March 21, 2009 at 01:42 PM EDT

I would definitely be in favor of drug fact boxes. These past few months I have been hearing a lot of criticism towards the Food and Drug Administration and mal practice suits against doctors, and I think it would take a lot of pressure off the professionals and the patients to implement such a policy. Patients do not usually understand what illnesses they have, how to best be treated, or what other options they have. Patients put a lot of trust in their doctors and expect that when they are given medicines they are all appropriate, safe, and will not be harmful when mixed. Although it is smart to ask questions and never assume a prescription will be free of side effects and safe to mix with other medicines, people do. Drug fact boxes will be an easy to see and comprehensible solution, especially if they simply spell out the risks, side effects, and list the drugs that are not safe to mix with the prescription. Having nutrition label-like drug facts should be obviously posted so they become unavoidable and force the patient read and consider for themselves if the risks are worth the benefits and what precautions they should take.

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blue comment bubble Posted by Susie on March 24, 2009 at 09:24 PM EDT

I would definitely be in favor of drug fact boxes. These past few months I have been hearing a lot of criticism towards the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and mal practice suits against doctors, and I think it would take a lot of pressure off the professionals and the patients to implement such a policy. Patients do not usually understand what illnesses they have, how to best be treated, or what other options they have. Patients put a lot of trust in their doctors and expect that when they are given medicines they are all appropriate, safe, and will not be harmful when mixed, displaying this information so it is accessible to the patients would give them more of a say in their own health decisions, instead of relying solely on the doctor.
Although it is smart to ask questions and never assume a prescription will be free of side effects and safe to mix with other medicines, people do. Drug fact boxes will be an easy to see and comprehensible solution, especially if they simply spell out the risks, side effects, and list the drugs that are not safe to mix with the prescription. Having nutrition label-like drug facts should be obviously posted so they become unavoidable and force the patient to read and consider for himself if the risks are worth the benefits and what precautions he should take.
Being able to see when the drug was passed by the FDA would also be beneficial. I read an article in the Washington Post a few days ago about a drug test with tainted results. Having the FDA information would spur me to consider choosing a new drug versus an outdated one or instead, going for a more reliable drug as opposed to a new and more experimental treatment. I would also be made aware of the clinical trials and their successes and failures.
In my opinion, drug fact boxes would be nothing but advantageous for patients and doctors. Both parties would be able to make informed choices, justify their reasons, and face fewer surprises during treatments.

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