Prescription data
=================

* David Zitner

Directed medical education programs modify prescribing practices and can improve care.1 It would be useful to learn how data management groups like IMS HEALTH could work together not only with pharmaceutical companies but also with medical societies, individual physicians and health services administrators to identify opportunities to improve prescribing practices.

IMS is not the only organization that provides information on physician-specific practices.2 The Canadian Institute for Health Information provides health organizations and provincial governments with such data.3 Just as pharmaceutical companies have used prescribing information for marketing purposes to increase sales and revenue, so provincial governments and health organizations have used information on comparative lengths of hospital stays from the Canadian Institute for Health Information to reduce the costs of care.

Responsible governance of our health care system requires the capacity to link health care activities with the results of those activities, something that neither the IMS prescription database nor the Canadian Institute for Health Information databases for hospital days can do. 

## References

1.  1. Gonzales R, Steiner JF, Lum A, Barrett PH. Decreasing antibiotic use in ambulatory practice: impact of a multidimensional intervention on the treatment of uncomplicated acute bronchitis in adults. JAMA 1999;281(16):1512-9.
    
    [CrossRef](http://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/external-ref?access_num=10.1001/jama.281.16.1512&link_type=DOI) 
    
    [PubMed](http://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/external-ref?access_num=10227321&link_type=MED&atom=%2Fcmaj%2F164%2F10%2F1408.3.atom) 
    
    [Web of Science](http://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/external-ref?access_num=000079857400033&link_type=ISI) 

2.  2. Zoutman DE, Ford BD, Bassili AR. A call for the regulation of prescription data mining [commentary]. CMAJ 2000;163(9):1146-8. 
    
    [FREE Full Text](http://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiRlVMTCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6NDoiY21haiI7czo1OiJyZXNpZCI7czoxMDoiMTYzLzkvMTE0NiI7czo0OiJhdG9tIjtzOjI0OiIvY21hai8xNjQvMTAvMTQwOC4zLmF0b20iO31zOjg6ImZyYWdtZW50IjtzOjA6IiI7fQ==) 

3.  3. *Health care in Canada 2000: a first annual report*. Ottawa: Canadian Institute for Health Information; 2000. Available: [www.cihi.ca/Roadmap/Health\_Rep/healthreport2000/toc.shtml](http://www.cihi.ca/Roadmap/Health_Rep/healthreport2000/toc.shtml) (accessed 29 Jan 2001).