Consumer Health Resources

These websites provide quality information about drugs, but are aimed at consumers rather than health care professionals.  The materials provided are, in general, written using less complex language and focused on topics of interest to consumers.    

DailyMed: About DailyMed

http://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/about.cfm
DailyMed provides access to package inserts and labels for over-the-counter, herbal, and prescription drugs. Labels on DailyMed may not be identical to approved labels nor the labels on currently distributed products. DailyMed is provided by the United States National Library of Medicine. Search by drug name, NDC code, or drug class to locate the package insert.

Dietary Supplement Fact Sheets

http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/list-all/
Access to United States federal and state government-provided information on herbs and nutritional supplements. Information provided varies based on topic-- can include indications, research evidence to support or contradict health claims, traditional preparations, and potential interactions. About 90 herbs and supplements are included.

Drugs.com | Prescription Drugs - Information, Interactions & Side Effects

http://www.drugs.com/

This commercial site provides professional-level and consumer-level information on prescription drugs, over-the-counter medicines and natural products. Search or browse by drug name, drug class name, or conditions. Includes pill identifier, interactions checker, personal medication records and information in Spanish. Sources of information include American Hospital Formulary Service Drug Information (AHFS DI), United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Micromedex, and MedFacts.

Electronic Medicines Compendium (eMC)

http://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/
Up to date, easily accessible information about most of the licensed medicines available for use in the United Kingdom (UK). Contains summaries of product characteristics for use by health care professionals as well as patient information leaflets. Maintained by a nonprofit organization funded by UK pharmaceutical companies. Search by drug name or manufacturer name.

Glossary of Terms and Symbols Used in Pharmacology

http://www.bumc.bu.edu/busm-pm/academics/resources/glossary/
This extensive glossary of pharmacology terms and symbols is created and maintained by faculty at the Boston University School of Medicine. The terms used in this glossary are often used in new drug applications, scientific literature produced on the discovery and use of drugs, and reference works that discuss drugs. While not specifically created for consumers, the succinct yet detailed explanations often include examples and anecdotes to help improve understanding, and could be used by non-health-care professionals to understand drug and medication information.

GoodRX- Prescription drug prices at local and online pharmacies
http://www.goodrx.com/
Search GoodRX by drug name and location to view and compare prices. GoodRX gathers price data from United States pharmacies, insurance companies, and consumers. The site also includes printable coupons (provided by drug manufacturers, pharmacies, and other groups) to permit consumers to save even more money on prescriptions. GoodRx app for iPhone, iPad or Android smartphone is available free via Apple Store or Google Play.

Herbs at a Glance

http://nccam.nih.gov/health/herbsataglance.htm
Provides fact sheets about 50 frequently used herbs, including common and Latin names, how they are used medicinally, side effects and cautions, and summaries of and citations to research on the topic. The Herbs at a Glance fact sheet can be downloaded as an ebook in ePub and Kindle format.

InfantRisk Center

http://www.infantrisk.com/
This site offers brief, evidence-based information on drugs for pregnant and breastfeeding mothers. Organized in consumer-friendly sections ("pregnancy," "breastfeeding," "depression," "nausea," etc.) and written in consumer-friendly language, each entry covers pharmacologic treatments for a disease state and potential problems for pregnant or lactating women, and includes scholarly references for further research. It can also be searched by generic or brand name. Supported by the InfantRisk Center at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center.

Institute for Safe Medication Practices

http://www.ismp.org/
This nonprofit seeks to educate consumers and health care providers on safe medication practices. For health care providers, under the section "Tools," it includes a list of drugs that should not be crushed, frequently-confused drug names, lists of Tall Man lettering, lists of high-alert drugs, and other sources of often difficult-to-find information about prescription drugs. The site also sells books, webinars, and other products, but access to the lists of drug information described in this abstract are all free.

ISMP Canada Safety Bulletins
http://www.ismp-canada.org/ISMPCSafetyBulletins.htm
Timely bulletins on medication incidents to improve patient safety with Canada-specific alerts and warnings. Hosted by the Institute for Safe Medication Practices Canada (ISMP). Search by drug name or indication. French version also available. Companion site for consumers available at http://safemedicationuse.ca/ 

MayoClinic.com Drugs and Supplements

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/drug-information/DrugHerbIndex
Search or browse for brief information for consumers on frequently-used prescriptions, over-the-counter drugs, herbs, vitamins, and other supplements. Content includes brand names, use, precautions, and side effects. Content is taken from Natural Standard's patient monographs.

MedEffect Canada - Health Canada homepage
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/dhp-mps/medeff/index-eng.php
Safety alerts, public health advisories, warnings, recalls, press releases, and other notices from industry for health professionals and the public on marketed health products, including prescription drugs, natural health products and medical devices. Search Canada Vigilance Adverse Reaction Online Database. Can also report to Canada Vigilance Program adverse reactions and side effects to medications, biologics, natural health products, and radiopharmaceuticals.

Medication Guide app from Drugs.com
http://www.drugs.com/apps/
Drugs.com provides one free information app, "Medication Guide," available for Android and iOS. It includes brief facts about prescription and over-the-counter drugs, a pill identifier, an interactions checker (oral forms only), a side effects search, pricing info, and the ability to create a personalized list of drugs. Drugs.com also offers several other paid apps.

MedlinePlus: Drugs, Herbs and Supplements: MedlinePlus
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginformation.html
This United States government-supported site is aimed at consumers and provides basic drug information on popular prescription, over-the-counter medicines, dietary supplements, and herbal remedies, including side effects, dosage, special precautions. Browse by generic or brand name for prescription and over-the-counter drugs; browse alphabetically by herb or supplement name.

PDR Health | Rx Drug Interactions, Side Effects | Official site of Physicians' Desk Reference

http://www.pdrhealth.com/
Explanations for the consumer about safe and effective use of prescription and over-the-counter drugs. Can be searched using brand names or browsed alphabetically. Content is based on the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drug information found in the Physicians' Desk Reference (PDR). Also contains disease and condition information for common ailments.

Pill Identification - WebMD

http://www.webmd.com/pill-identification/default.htm
Identify prescription and over-the-counter drugs available in the United States by inputting shape, color or imprint. Includes pictures. While the currency of this information cannot be found, it is a good source for identifying pills for the general public, who do not usually have access to pricey subscriptions with similar content.

Pillbox - prototype pill identification system
http://pillbox.nlm.nih.gov/
Pillbox is a pill identification system created by the United States National Library of Medicine. Enter information such as imprinted code, size, color, and shape and find matching products. A unique search is for inactive ingredients-- one can identify pills with or without a specific inactive ingredient, a great help for those with specific allergies or sensitivities. Once a pill is identified,you will be linked to drug labels and other information available from US National Library of Medicine websites. It is still in development, so information has not been verified by manufacturers, not all drugs approved in the United States are listed, and not all drugs include photos.

Sloan-Kettering - About Herbs, Botanicals & Other Products

http://www.mskcc.org/mskcc/html/11570.cfm
Evidence-based information about herbs, botanicals and supplements for professionals and consumers. Product monographs include information about scientific and common names, clinical summary, uses, constituents, mechanism of action, pharmacokinetics, adverse reactions, herb-drug interactions, and lab interactions. Reference lists are also provided. Search or browse by herbal name or use (indication). Created and maintained by the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Cancer in New York.