Pharmacy Resources

Mobile applications for drug and healthcare references are an incredibly useful resource for the student pharmacist. The College of Pharmacy Electronic Resources Committee has prepared this list to assist students in identifying reliable and useful healthcare-related mobile apps. This document is intended to serve only for guidance – RFUMS does not specifically endorse or support any particular mobile software package.

 

MicroMedex Mobile

Mobile App Information

• Prescription drug information populated by Micromedex’s DrugPoints Summary database
• Drug interactions and IV compatibility suites (also for free with a university password)

Drawbacks

• Drug information is abbreviated – it does not use the more detailed DRUGDEX database (web-based only)
• Application is non-functional if there are updates available that have not yet been downloaded

How to Access

• Download Micromedex, Micromedex Interactions, and Micromedex Compatibility in your phone's app store
• Go to Micromedex website (through the Boxer Library) and click on "Download Center" (the top, right-hand corner). Enter the password from “Step 4” on the website into the Micromedex app.

 

UpToDate

Mobile App Information

• Prescription drug information populated by the LexiComp (LexiDrugs) database (see LexiDrugs for more info)
• Peer-reviewed, referenced articles of disease states
• Mobile-optimized medical calculators with notes and references

Drawbacks

• Requires an active internet connection to access any articles
• Does not include drug interaction checking (unlike LexiComp and web-based UpToDate)
• Must reactivate remote access every 90-days by logging into website

How to Access

• Go to the UpToDate.com website (through the Boxer Library) and click the “Log In/Register” link
• Fill out the registration form and click "Submit Registration"
•  At this point, you will be asked to accept the licensing agreement, and you will then be redirected back to the UpToDate homepage already signed in with your personal account
• An email will be sent to you from UpToDate with instructions for downloading the app (no need to wait for the email - all the instructions really say is "download the app on your device and log in with the UpToDate username and password you just created”)
• In order to keep using the mobile version of UpToDate, it will be necessary to log on to the desktop version (using the steps outlined above) every 90 days to re-verify your affiliation. Please note that this is the publisher's requirement, not ours.

 

LexiDrugs

Mobile App Information

• Prescription drug database (the same as UpToDate) contains the most detailed drug information of any mobile app that the committee evaluated. It includes off-label information, primary literature references, and clinical pearls from drug information experts
• Frequently used and recommended by clinical pharmacists
• Unlike UpToDate, the database is stored locally on your mobile device – an internet connection is not required

Drawbacks

• Cost ($75 per year or $150 for three years)
• Other LexiComp products, such as drug interaction checking, requires a more expensive subscription

How to Access

• Purchase a subscription on LexiComp website (http://webstore.lexi.com/Store/PDA-Software-for-Pharmacists), then download the mobile app in your phone’s app store
• Consider purchasing the “Lexi-Drugs” package alone (least costly, most relevant to drug information)

 

Medscape

​Mobile App Information

• Prescription and herbal drug information – less detailed than LexiDrugs or Micromedex databases
• Includes some information regarding herbal products (not available in other databases tested)
• Provides drug interaction checking, calculations, and summary articles on a variety of topics

Drawbacks

• Drug information is sometimes abbreviated; lacks the detailed information of LexiDrugs or Micromedex
• Off-label recommendations are not appropriately flagged or explained in detail

How to Access

• Download for free in your phone's app store (requires free registration)

 

ePocrates

Mobile App Information

• Drug information, pill identification, interaction checking, calculations, and informative tables
• Free application that is frequently used by physicians and other healthcare providers
• Similar drug information quality to Medscape

Drawbacks

• Drug information is sometimes abbreviated; lacks the detailed information of LexiDrugs or Micromedex
• Physicians often use ePocrates for drug information before approaching a pharmacist with a question. As a pharmacist, it is useful to have a different, more robust drug reference.

How to Access

• Download for free in your phone’s app store (requires free registration)

 

Pharmacist's Letter
Mobile App Information

• Brief drug-related articles that highlight important points or clinical pearls
• Useful resources like drug class comparison charts, guidelines, and CE sessions

Drawbacks

• Requires active internet access for the app to retrieve information
• Information is provided in brief "snippets". This is not an appropriate resource when performing a comprehensive review of a complex topic.

How to Access

• As a pharmacy student, you are eligible for a free subscription via http://studentpharmacist.com
• Download for free in your phone's app store (requires registration)

 

ASCVD Risk Estimator

Mobile App Information

• Atherosclerosis Cardiovascular Disease (ASCVD) 10-year risk estimation tool commonly used in evaluating a patient’s risk for cardiovascular disease and potential eligibility for statin therapy
• Created by the American College of Cardiology Foundation (ACCF), the group who published the ASCVD pooled cohort model and the 2013 lipid guidelines
• iPhone application: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ascvd-risk-estimator/id808875968?mt=8
• Android application: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.acc.cvrisk&hl=en

 

CDC Vaccine Schedules

Mobile App Information

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and ACIP (Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices) vaccination schedules for both adults and pediatric patients
• Phone application: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/cdc-vaccine-schedules/id875273858?mt=8
• Android application: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=gov.cdc.ncird.vaccineschedule

The College of Pharmacy Electronic Resources committee discussed these applications and neither recommends nor discourages their use (see reasoning below).

• iPharmacy Pill ID & Drug Info (free) – Accurate pill identification, but the app is focused towards consumers (not healthcare providers). It contains many ancillary features not relevant to pill identification that the committee did not evaluate (eg, “nearby pharmacies”, discount cards, package insert drug information, etc)
• Drugs.com Mobile App (free) – Similarly to iPharmacy Pill ID, accurate pill identification was confirmed but the app contained consumer-focused information and many ancillary features that were not evaluated
• JournalClub (by WikiJournalClub.com, $6.99) – The committee does not evaluate paid-only applications, but the app was noted through student surveys. JournalClub is a mobile version of the collaborative website (WikiJournalClub) that provides concise summaries of landmark clinical trials. The content of this application is available for free at http://wikijournalclub.com.
• ICU Trials ($4.99) † – The committee does not evaluate paid-only applications, but the app was noted through student surveys. This application summarizes landmark clinical trials in the field of critical care.
• FlashRX ($4.99) † – The committee does not evaluate paid-only applications, but the app was noted through student surveys. This application provides a flashcard-style and quiz-based review of the top 250 drugs.

† Denotes a mobile application in which an RFUMS faculty member has a conflict of interest

This is not a comprehensive list. The College of Pharmacy Electronic Resources committee evaluated these mobile applications as suggested by students in an online survey. We feel that these resources are not as robust as the aforementioned applications or are not appropriate for healthcare providers to use for drug information.

• Davis’s Drug Guide – Inappropriate drug dosing information for the monographs evaluated by the committee
• OTCPlus – Inappropriate use of brand names for OTC products, no dosing information available, inadequate drug information
• MPR (Monthly Prescribing Reference) – Extremely brief and limited drug monographs, dosing information inadequate for the monographs evaluated by the committee
• Pill Finder 2 – Although drug identification was correct, the app provided “no image” labels to medications that had confirmed images in other apps tested (iPharmacy Pill ID, Drugs.com, NIH Pill ID)