Around 75% of Australians have experienced a bad reaction to a medication, but fewer than half have reported it to a doctor or the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), a new survey has found. A study by the University of South Australia, polling 544 adults taking one or more medicines, has found that only 36 % of those who experienced an adverse drug reaction (ADR) let health authorities know – by phone, email, in person or via the TGA website. Most of them were unaware they could use digital tools to report the ADR, helping regulatory authorities to more closely assess specific medications to detect any negative patterns.
In Australia, up to 3 % of all hospital admissions are due to medication-related harm, resulting in an estimated 250,000 admissions and costing the healthcare system $1.4 billion every year. A $1.
7 million Federal Government NHMRC grant is now helping UniSA researchers to develop new, consumer-focused digital tools to make it easier to report ADRs and cut health costs. Lead researcher UniSA PhD candidate Mohammed Dedefo says international studies have shown that digital tools can double the incidence of ADR reporting, but lack of awareness about this option in Australia is contributing to under-reporting. “Strengthening the vigilance around medication-related harm is essential to monitor the safety of medicines in hospitals and other settings,” he says.
“The main reason why most people don’t report adverse drug reactions is because they do not .