title: Comparison of information obtained from a Usenet newsgroup and from drug information centers.
abstract: Responses to drug information questions posted on the Internet Usenet pharmacy newsgroup sci.med. pharmacy were compared for accuracy with responses from drug information centers (DICs). Twenty-five questions were randomly selected from the past five years' continuing-education sections of the Annals of Pharmacotherapy, and possible answers were determined on the basis of corresponding articles. The questions were randomly submitted to sci.med.pharmacy from various e-mail accounts over a 10-week period. The same questions were submitted by telephone to randomly selected DICs. The correctness of responses was judged by a panel of four pharmacists. The questions received 31 responses from sci.med. pharmacy and 38 from the DICs. The responses from sci.med.pharmacy received 38 (31%) judgments of correct and the responses from the DICs, 85 (56%). A significantly smaller proportion of drug information responses from the Usenet newsgroup sci.med.pharmacy were judged as being accurate compared with responses from DICs.
authors.affiliation: SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals, Scottsdale, AZ 85250, USA. seaboldt@mcn.net
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Seaboldt
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kuiper
mesh_terms: D003195:Computer Communication Networks; D004346:Drug Information Services; D006801:Humans; D010593:Pharmaceutical Services; D014481:United States