FDB (First Databank, Inc.)

Some patients who report a penicillin allergy may actually have an intolerance or no adverse reaction at all. However, maintaining an allergy history that includes penicillin could negatively affect their health when they need those medications. Clinical pharmacy specialists at one U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs hospital spent a year studying penicillin allergies among emergency department (ED) patients. They reviewed 144 adults who arrived at the ED with a documented penicillin allergy, sorted each reaction history by risk, and offered an oral amoxicillin challenge to consenting low-risk patients who were being admitted. Across the full group, 49% had the allergy removed. A patient who keeps an inaccurate drug allergy history may needlessly suffer greater consequences later. Research shows that avoiding penicillin and beta-lactam antibiotics is tied to higher hospitalization costs, suboptimal therapy and greater risk of a later infection with a multidrug-resistant organism. While these results are from just one hospital, it still demonstrates the importance of precise, patient-specific drug knowledge at the point of prescribing. Data that separates intolerance from a true hypersensitivity reaction can tell the prescriber which beta-lactams remain available to treat serious infections and improve outcomes. Published in the Western Journal of Emergency Medicine: https://lnkd.in/eghwb4Cd

Our #FDBGivesBack team spent the day with Indy Parks and Recreation cleaning up the bathhouse at the Eagle Creek Swimming Beach and getting it ready for a fresh coat of paint. The bathhouse serves swimmers, boaters, anglers, and hikers who visit the park. 🏊♂️ 🚤 🎣 🥾 🏞️ Fun fact: that "creek" behind us in the group photo is much bigger than most creeks. It probably was a creek at one point! Eagle Creek Park is one of Indianapolis's great outdoor spaces for swimming, boating, fishing, and hiking. We're glad we could help get it ready for everyone who visits. ✋🏼 💙 A big thank you to Eagle Creek Park Manager Michelle McPhillips for hosting us, and to our volunteers: Pictured left to right: Michelle McPhillips, Kristin Buechler, PharmD, BCCCP, Karen Ratzman, Andrea Evankovich, Michael Silver, Bentley Walker, Rajean McCain, Andrew Kammers, Kalpana Akkineni, and Aarna #CommunityService #Volunteering #Indianapolis #IndyParks

What if ambient AI could do more than take notes? 🎙️ Our President, David Delaney, MD, joined Todd Eury on TWIRx: This Week in Pharmacy from the Pharmacy Podcast Network to talk about the newly announced FDB Script Agent™. FDB Script Agent is an AI-powered prescribing agent that takes ambient listening beyond clinical documentation. It turns the conversation between a patient and clinician into a structured prescription, ready for the clinician to review. FDB medication intelligence provides the clinical grounding and codification, so it doesn't rely on natural-language processing alone. Dr. Delaney and Todd discuss what this next generation of ambient AI could mean for: ➡️ Prescribing workflows ➡️ Medication safety ➡️ Clinicians ➡️ The pharmacies receiving those prescriptions ⏱️ Jump to Dr. Delaney's interview at the 1:06:13 mark. Listen to TWIRx: https://lnkd.in/efVSZjnT 

Are you heading to #MEDITECHLIVE26, September 29 to October 1? FDB is proud to be part of MEDITECH's Alliance Network and to be the most widely used drug database among MEDITECH customers. Meet our team at the event to talk about your priorities and see our latest innovations in medication safety, adherence, and precision medicine: 💊 Meducation®, now integrated with both MEDITECH Expanse and MaaS, helps care teams give patients clear, personalized medication instructions within their workflows. Meducation content can: 🔹 Be written at a 5th to 8th grade reading level 🔹 Be available in more than 33 languages 🔹 Include calendars, pictograms, and engaging video demonstrations 🧬 FDB Pharmacogenomic CDS supports MEDITECH Expanse Genomics with actionable guidance to help clinicians make more informed medication decisions. It can help clinicians: 🔹 Identify when genomic testing may be appropriate 🔹 Get dose-adjustment recommendations 🔹 Find therapeutic alternatives 🔹 Access guidance at the right time in the clinical workflow 📅  Want to meet at the event? Book time with our team using the link in the comments.

New research in the Journals of the American Pharmacists Association (JAPhA) makes a case worth sitting with: for people managing both schizophrenia and type 2 diabetes, medication adherence often has less to do with the patient and more to do with the caregiver supporting them. In a study of 530 family caregivers across seven hospitals, caregivers with stronger mental health literacy and better access to reliable health information had patients with meaningfully better adherence. Notably, higher caregiver income and sense of coherence were negatively associated with adherence, a reminder that a caregiver's circumstances and their caregiving capacity may not always reflect our assumptions. The authors' own recommendation aligns with something we believe deeply: pharmacists are uniquely positioned to screen for caregiver health literacy at the point of dispensing and lead education for families managing complex regimens at home. Improving medication adherence involves supporting both the patient and caregiving system. Pharmacists are essential to helping everyone reach the best outcomes. Read the full study: https://lnkd.in/ekG52_j3

Hispanic Heritage Month runs from September 15 through October 15, and we're taking the time to recognize the Hispanic and Latino communities whose contributions have helped to shape medicine, pharmacy, public health, and technology, including the colleagues on our own team who bring that perspective to the work we do every day. The recognition is also a good reminder of something we carry into our own work: good health information only does its job if it actually reaches the people who need it, in a way that makes sense for their community and their language. To everyone celebrating this month, and to the Hispanic and Latino professionals across healthcare doing the work of making patient care safer: thank you. We see you, and we're proud to work alongside you. #HispanicHeritageMonth #HealthEquity

Millions of people take generic medications every day, but how much do they actually know about how generics differ from brand-name drugs? AARP tackled that question in a new piece featuring FDB's own Thomas So, PharmD, MBA-HCA, senior manager of Consumer Drug Information Group· Tom broke down what actually varies between a brand and its generic: while the active ingredient is the same, differences in fillers, dyes, gluten or lactose can make some generics harder for certain patients to tolerate. He also explained how manufacturers have changed active ingredients in familiar over-the-counter products over time, using Kaopectate as an example, a good reminder of why staying current on drug data matters. He also pointed out something simple but often overlooked: many patients don't actually know the brand name of what they're taking, since they rely on their physician to guide them. The article closes on his point that pharmacists want to help and are glad to answer questions, even when they're busy. Congratulations to Tom for representing FDB so well in this feature. Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/eKjmnn2q