Iodine.com is a new drug information database that is accessible to the public and combines clinical information with patient reviews of medications. Time magazine is quoted as saying the website is “the Yelp of medicine”.

After a thorough review of Iodine.com we have come up with some positives about the website, and some areas for improvement.

Positives:

1. The information that is presented on the website is clinically accurate.
2. Information is provided in a patient friendly format at an appropriate reading level.
3. Stories of encouragement from patients who are currently using the medication are included. An example is patients taking metformin offer clinically appropriate tips to reduce the incidence of GI upset, such as taking the larger dose of medication at night or drinking more water with each dose.

Room for improvement:

1. When you look up a medication the first screen that comes up says “How people feel about (selected drug name)”. It then goes on to give statistics of surveyed patients in the categories of: Is the drug worth it overall? How well does the drug work for you? Is the drug a hassle? Unfortunately, the website does not offer any comparison to what happens if the disease is left untreated. Drugs with major side effects may have low patient scores even if clinically effective. The way the information is presented seems like a recipe that promotes non-adherence. Without scaring patients it is important to show the clinical benefit offered by drug therapy.
2. The website lacks information on the disease state each medication is used to treat. Showing the risks and disease progression for untreated patients compared to the benefits of drug therapy would provide a clear message that the drug is helpful and there may be some side effects that must be dealt with.
3. There seems to always be a “but” associated with statements on the website. For example, it says “metformin is a very effective medicine to lower blood sugar and the risk of complications and death from diabetes, but it’s likely to cause diarrhea for the first few weeks.” Although the part about diarrhea is true, it is another emphasis on reasons patients may not start or stop taking medications.

Pharmacists are the medication experts and patient counseling should be individualized to help patients meet their treatment goals. No website will replace this interaction, but rather help supplement it with medication related information. If a resource causes confusion or potential non-adherence it should direct patients to discuss the information with their pharmacist or physician. Sharing patient experiences with a drug on Iodine.com may better prepare future patients to conquer challenges related to the specific medication. Like any other customer reviews, these need to be carefully considered and not be the primary focus for determining therapy.

Healthcare professionals are always looking for ways to provide their patients with accurate and easy to understand drug information. Iodine.com is on its way to becoming the type of resource physicians and pharmacists can direct patients to, but it cannot be at the risk of non-adherence to essential medications. Iodine.com is a certified National Association of Boards of Pharmacy e-Advertiser program which makes it even more imperative to provide the full scope of medication information.