Primary Care Pharmacy March 2000 Vol 1 No 2 p61

News

Websites of interest

Journals and publications

Clinical evidence - www.evidence.org
Electronic medicines compendium - www.emc.vhn.net

Internet and MEDLINE basics
For anyone getting started, try "Internet and MEDLINE basics", which uses simple terminology to give advice on the internet and tells you where to find searchable databases for medical publications and information. It is really designed to introduce the British Medical Association's Medline Plus database, which can only be accessed if you have a BMA membership number. This is a really good service and practice-based pharmacists may be able to persuade a GP colleague to give them access. ‘Internet and MEDLINE basics' is published by the British medical association and is obtained by contacting Dr Dan Rutherford at http://business.virgin.net/ dan.rutherford/index.htm. It costs £2.

Drug information

The Clinical Governance Research and Development Unit (Downloadable audit protocols) www.le.ac.uk/cgrdu
NHS Direct - nhsdirect.nhs.uk/main.jhtml
Midlands Therapeutic Review Advisory Committee (bulletins to support managed entry process) www.keele.ac.uk/depts/mm/MTRAC/About/about.htm

Approved group protocols

A new website that includes approved group protocols for the supply and administration of medicines in the North West region has been launched. It is managed by the pharmacy at Hope hospital, Salford.
The website is an initiative in support of the clinical governance agenda. The aim is to enable health professionals in both primary and secondary care to learn from each other and to improve the efficiency of introducing group protocols by preventing duplication of effort. Emphasis is placed on the importance of producing protocols locally and advice is given not to adopt them unchanged for use elsewhere.
Primary care pharmacists are encouraged to visit the site and search for protocols that may be similar to those that they wish to produce.
The site will be constantly developing as more protocols are added and a page listing recent additions will be continuously maintained. Submissions for protocols from centres outside the North West region will be considered. Anyone wishing to submit protocols to the site should contact Mr Peter Jones via the website or by telephone 0161 787 5220. www.groupprotocols.org.uk

Organisations

Contacts, help, advice and information network - www.nthames-health.tpmde.ac.uk/rliu/nthames-health.htm
The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) - www.nice.org.uk
The Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) - www.sign.ac.uk
Scottish health on the web - www.show.scot.nhs.uk
Research funding / Primary care research networks - www.rcgp.org.uk/college/activity/research/index.htm