[For the Establishment of an Informative Support Framework in Pharmacies: Informative Support System for Diabetes]

According to the Japanese revitalization strategy endorsed by the government in June, 2013, pharmacies are expected to play an active role as the hub of health information. But this is not sufficiently organized: an infrastructure for providing neutral information which becomes the basis of such health information is not yet established for healthcare professionals, patients and consumers. As for drug information available subsequent to the marketing of pharmaceutical products, information from the pharmaceutical companies including Package Inserts and Interview-forms are often found. However, though such information from companies is important, it is necessary for healthcare professionals and patients to have access to the information evaluated by a trustworthy third party. With overseas distribution, the dissemination of drug information is provided by third parties, which are independent of regulatory agencies. For example, National Health Service (NHS) Evidence in the UK offers wide-ranging information based on evidence from a disease to pharmaceutical products, and is a widely available information source for healthcare professionals, patients and consumers. With regard to therapeutic medications, drug information and health foods in the Japanese community, it is necessary for patients and healthcare professionals that we establish neutral and common systematic information based on the research evidence. By providing information on the Internet, which enables people to access the information easily and to assess a product's usefulness objectively, we hope to eventually develop a system that ensures a patient's safety in the use of drugs.