Medication history assessment in research: A randomized controlled trial comparing tablet-based (eMedHAT) versus...

Area of Science:

• Clinical Research
• Health Informatics
• Pharmacology

Background:

• Accurate medication histories are crucial for high-quality research, particularly in epidemiology and clinical trials.
• Medication data informs exposure assessment and helps identify drug-outcome associations.
• Concomitant medications can impact study drug efficacy and safety, necessitating precise collection methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the accuracy of medication histories collected via structured interview versus a tablet-based application.
• To evaluate the efficiency (time required for collection and data entry) of both methods.

Main Methods:

• A randomized controlled trial design was employed.
• Participants recorded medications in a diary for 30 days.
• Subjects were then randomized to either a structured interview (MedHAT) or a tablet-based application (eMedHAT) for history collection.

Main Results:

• Recall accuracy was comparable between the structured interview (MedHAT) and the tablet-based application (eMedHAT) (76.9% vs. 75.2%).
• The tablet-based method (eMedHAT) reduced the total time for history collection and data entry by 16 minutes compared to the structured interview.

Conclusions:

• Tablet-based medication history collection is as accurate as traditional methods using research assistants.
• The digital approach offers significant time savings for researchers, enhancing study efficiency.