Abstract

Safe and effective prescribing is a cornerstone of proper patient care. There has recently been a significant increase in the numbers of health care professionals able to prescribe; however, sources of drug information tend to focus on only one area of prescribing. This book links practical information about how to use medicines with concise details about their pharmacology and the principles of clinical pharmacology that govern their actions. The overall structure of this handbook is similar to that of the British National Formulary, with monographs on each drug arranged broadly by therapeutic category. When a drug has several different uses, these are brought together in a single monograph, allowing the reader to appreciate its full range of actions, whether therapeutic or adverse. Each drug entry provides the following information in a clearly laid out and standardized form: * A graphical representation of the pharmacological actions of the drug, with its potential uses * Practical advice on usage for a drug's major indications * A list of the most common and serious adverse effects, with frequencies and action to take * Major drug-drug interactions * Practical advice on monitoring for therapeutic and adverse effects * Patient information - what you should tell your patients Teaching points throughout the text draw out pharmacological principles, so that readers can increase their basic knowledge by linking theory with practical examples. Also included are several boxes giving guidance on the approach to therapy of specific diseases and clinical problems. In some case algorithms for the treatment of medical emergencies are also given. The Oxford Handbook of Practical Drug Therapy brings together for the first time in a single book really practical information on safe prescribing with the background knowledge that underpins clinical pharmacology.