A recent study by The Degge Group found that many doctors are uneducated when it comes to prescribing drugs that may negatively interact with one another. Researchers studied the prescribing habits of doctors who dispensed the now banned heartburn drug Propulsid.
Figures indicate that between 1993 and 1998, 4,414 Propulsid prescriptions were written by doctors who concurrently prescribed medications known to negatively interact with Propulsid. Despite numerous warning letters and labeling changes, Propulsid was removed from the market because doctors continued to dispense the heartburn medication with other drugs that should not be used with Propulsid.
Researchers say that the study's results highlight the need to educate not only doctors, but also pharmacists, of the dangers of drug interactions. It is felt that if pharmacists were properly informed, they could act as a last line of defense in preventing deadly drug interactions caused by physicians' careless prescribing habits.