Grant: Operating Grant

Patients may experience harm from prescribed medications due to adverse drug reactions or prescribing errors. Collectively, such medicine-induced harm is termed adverse drug events. In addition to the potential for direct harm, adverse drug events may lead to harm indirectly if the patient stops taking their medication as a result. We have devised an information technology based method to identify adverse drug events in community practice, which is based on an "interactive voice response system" or IVRS. An IVRS is a technology that facilitates human interaction with computers through a telephone interface. IVRS have been evaluated in health care for many purposes. Our novel IVRS design will enable patient-provider information and ensure providers are informed when patients are not doing optimally. For this project, we will determine the feasibility of implementing the technology, its acceptability to patients and providers, and its potential impact in terms of avoided adverse drug events and enhanced medication compliance. The information derived from this project will inform researchers and policy makers of this technology's potential to improve health care outcome and its associated costs.