Free information for pharmacists

Where can you can find high-quality, free information on the internet?

RPS website

The RPS website includes good-quality, free information for members including:

• Access to current guidance and professional standards
• Access to our Library’s e-resources including e-books, databases and our open-access journals list.

NHS Resources

NHS Choices: the UK’s largest health website

• Directory of NHS services (including pharmacies)
• ‘Care and support’ guide
• ‘Behind the headlines’ (background information to health stories)
• ‘Health A – Z’ (information on conditions and treatments).

Specialist Pharmacy Service

• Information about medicines – including new medicines, shortages and discontinuations
• Regulatory advice, policy, guidance etc.

Medicines Information

Electronic Medicines Compendium (eMC)

Up-to-date information about medicines licensed for use in the UK.

• Summaries of Product Characteristics (SPCs)
• Patient Information Leaflets (PILs).

Children’s medicines

Medicines for Children

A useful site to which to direct parents.

• Medicines information leaflets
• How to administer different types of medicine.

Medicines in pregnancy

Best Use of Medicines in Pregnancy (BUMPS)

The site is provided by the UK Teratology Information Service (UKTIS): a not-for-profit organisation funded by Public Health England.

Includes leaflets about the effects that medicines used during pregnancy might have on babies.

Veterinary Medicines

National Office of Animal Health (NOAH)

Includes NOAH datasheet compendium.

Travel health

National Travel Health Network and Centre (NaTHNaC)

Guidance on travel health for healthcare professionals advising the public

• Travel-health information with information for individual countries and global health issues
• Clinical resources for health professionals who administer the yellow fever vaccine

Free databases

Cochrane Library includes six databases which include different types of evidence:

• Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR)
• Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL)
• Cochrane Methodology Register (CMR)
• Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (DARE)
• Health Technology Assessment Database (HTA)
• NHS Economic Evaluation Database (EED).