Why do you need Consumer Medicine Information?
Are you about to start taking a new medicine?
Did you know that you can ask for as much information as you want about the medicines you take? Even asking the ‘silly’ questions can help you maximise the benefits – and minimise the potential risks – of taking a medicine.
If you do have questions or worries about your medicine, you can:
talk to your pharmacist
ask your doctor
talk to your nurse or other healthcare professional
contact the pharmaceutical company that makes the medicine. You can usually find contact details on your medicine packaging, but you can also ask your pharmacist to give you the number.
You also have the right to receive written information about your medicine.
In Australia, the most comprehensive, up-to-date and reliable written information is provided in a special document called Consumer Medicine Information (CMI).
So, why is it important to have the information you need to use a medicine?
Medicines are complex (more than you might think)
Have you ever stopped to think about the medicine you take? What’s even in it?
For example, a tablet might contain ingredients like lactose, or something called mannitol, or even hydrogenated caster oil. These inactive ingredients might help the medicine bind together, or help it dissolve in the right way in your stomach.
And then there is the active ingredient. It usually has a name you can barely pronounce. Ampho-exi-fan-blah-blah. It’s the thing that makes your medicine, well, your medicine. Joking aside, it’s important to know what it is, because it differs from the brand name of the medicine. In fact, the same active ingredient may have many different brand names attached to it.
Let’s take a very common example. Paracetamol. We all know it. It goes by brand names like Panadol, Panamax and Hedanol. They all contain paracetamol, the active ingredient. The same applies to many other medicines – both prescription and non-prescription. In your cupboard, you might have packets of the same medicine (active ingredient), with different brand names. So take care to know the active ingredient of your medicine.
Additionally, not all medicines can be used in the same way. Some can be taken with food. Some shouldn’t. Some can be taken with other medicines. Some most definitely shouldn’t. Some can be crushed and divided. Some must not. Some are given as injections, or inhaled, or sprayed in your nose.
Medicines can be complex.
And our health and well-being are at stake when using medicines. So it stands to reason that following the instructions for your medicine really matters.
And yet, there is a growing body of evidence that suggests that people like you and me aren’t getting the instructions we need.
The Consumers Health Forum of Australia (CHF) is the national peak body representing the interests of Australian healthcare consumers. In a small recent survey, they asked consumers about their experiences with written medicine information and about the way they get information about prescription medicines.
The preliminary results of the survey showed that most people were not given written medicine information by their doctor or pharmacist when they started a new medicine. Even more concerning was the fact that one in three people had not even had a conversation with their doctor or pharmacist about how to use their medicine safely and effectively.
If knowledge is power, then we are becoming very feeble when it comes to our use of medicines.
You need and have a right to be informed (more than you might think)
You need, and have a right to, clear instructions for your medicine.
And this means more than just the sticker your pharmacist puts on the packaging – though this is some of the most crucial information to follow when using your medicine.
The sticker might make you think taking or using medicine is really simple. After all, to pop a pill is not a particularly complicated activity, is it? From hand to mouth. Swallow. Forget.
But as I said earlier, medicines can be complex. And on the whole, we are not doing so well with our health literacy, or more specifically our ‘medicines literacy’. What I mean by that is how we:
• understand how and why medicines are used
• apply that information to our medicine use
• use information to make decisions and act on them.
Research shows that almost 60 per cent of adult Australians have low health literacy, meaning they may not be able to really exercise their choice or voice when making healthcare decisions. This applies to medicines literacy too.
Whatever forces are driving down medicine literacy, it is clear that you can’t improve it if you don’t have access to good counselling or written content.
And with your health on the line, it’s really important to know a bit more about your medicine than just what the sticker on the box tells you.
So how can you find out more?
There is information available (more than you might think)
Your doctor and pharmacist are the experts on your condition(s) and their treatments. Make sure you feel satisfied with what they have explained about your medicine and how to use it.
And while you might be tempted to entrust all the decisions to your healthcare professionals, there is value in being armed with just a bit more information.
Because, while they are the experts on medical conditions and treatments, you are the expert on you.
So, don’t be afraid to ask ‘silly’ questions. A ‘silly’ question could be all that’s needed to maximise your successful treatment or protect you from harm.
As mentioned earlier, if you do have questions or worries about your medicine you can:
• talk to your pharmacist
• ask your doctor
• talk to your nurse or other healthcare professional
• contact the pharmaceutical company that markets the medicine.
Of course, there is also lots of information on medicines online.
But before you google, remember that not all the information that appears in the search results will the BEST information.
In Australia, the most reliable instruction manual for your prescription medicines is called Consumer Medicine Information, or CMI. These documents have been designed to help you use your medicine safely and effectively. They have also been designed to help the counselling activities of your healthcare provider.
Consumer Medicine Information should be given to you when you receive your medicine. Your doctor may give you the CMI when they first prescribe your medicine; or, more likely, your pharmacist will give you the CMI when they hand over your medicine at the pharmacy.
You can also ask your pharmacist or doctor to print the CMI for you.
You needn’t feel obliged to read the CMI from beginning to end. It has been designed to help you find the information you need easily, with headings and lists that should be simple to navigate.
I actually think having a printed copy in a file somewhere (like the instruction manual for any of your household items) is a good idea.
However, CMI does change from time to time – for example, when new information about a medicine is discovered. So, you will also need to keep your CMI up to date if you are using a medicine for a long time.
To do that, you can use the following sites and apps where up-to-date CMI is available 24/7:
• National Prescribing Service (NPS) Medicine Finder
• MedSearch app
So, are you about to start a new medicine? Why not get informed?
Ask your silly questions, voice your worries, and grab the CMI to keep on hand.
Sally Bathgate is a freelance medical writer with a decade of experience in research and the pharmaceutical industry in Australia.