Objectives: With the advancement in technology, many mobile phone applications (apps) are available for preventing drug-drug interactions (DDIs). As no information is available about usage of these apps, we aimed to investigate the awareness of clinicians of Saveetha Medical College and Hospital, Chennai, India, about DDI mobile apps, to assess utilization and perceptions of the apps, and to ascertain perceptions of DDIs.
Materials and methods: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey was conducted to collect data from 115 clinicians through Google Forms. Pearson χ2-test was utilized to identify associations among variables. For assessing perceptions, median total and individual statement scores were compared between various groups using Wilcoxon rank-sum or Kruskal-Wallis tests.
Results: Only half of the respondents were aware of DDI mobile apps, with internet (75.9%) and colleagues (50%) being common sources of information about the apps. The clinicians agreed that using these apps for confirming DDIs was time saving and improved patient care. Significant differences were observed in their perceptions by qualification and specialty. The majority of the clinicians (68.7%) did not have any specific training on DDIs, seldom encountered a harmful DDI (37.4%), often asked their patients about the use of over-the-counter drugs (88.6%), and always considered DDIs as a part of their prescribing decisions (46.1%). The most common sources of information regarding DDIs were websites (52.2%) followed by reference books for DDIs (50.4%).
Conclusion: DDI apps have tremendous potential in influencing drug safety in the future. Ensuring thorough quality control by the providers and regulatory supervision of these apps will empower this possibility while consistently improving patient safety.