Peterson A M
Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, University of the Sciences in Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
J Am Pharm Assoc (Wash). 2001 Mar-Apr;41(2):205-12. doi: 10.1016/s1086-5802(16)31231-1.
To determine whether differences in the provision of pharmacy services exist among different types of Internet pharmacies.
Survey of selected pharmacies with a presence on the Internet. Data were abstracted onto a data collection form for further analysis. Data collection was limited to 3 weeks.
U.S.-based Internet pharmacies that allow patients to purchase prescription medications online. Pharmacies were identified using a metasearch engine with the search terms "Internet pharmacy" and "Internet pharmacist."
Survey.
Comparisons of availability of 10 commonly used products representing a variety of product categories, prescription verification methods, and privacy issues; and determinations of site navigability, drug information and provider access, and payment methods. Sites were categorized as "chain pharmacy extensions," "mail order pharmacies," "independent pharmacy extensions," and "online pharmacies."
Thirty-three sites were reviewed. There was significant variation among the four types of pharmacies selling prescriptions over the Internet. Most pharmacies provided all of the drugs in the survey. Patients were required to provide their own prescription at 88% of the sites, and 75% of sites used mail or fax to verify prescription integrity. More than 50% of sites had privacy policies posted, and 64% used cookies. Chain pharmacy extensions required completion of an average of 10.2 pages to order drugs versus 2.4 to 4 pages for all other site types. Drug information was written at an eighth-grade reading level at 36% of the sites. More than two-thirds of the sites provided a toll-free telephone for a health care professional. Nearly 80% of the sites accepted health insurance, and 95% accepted credit cards; however, only 40% used a secure transmission mechanism for patient or payment information.
Internet pharmacies provide varying levels of service. Policies regarding the use of the Internet for obtaining medications should focus on improving the privacy of consumer information and ensuring the secure transmission of financial information.
确定不同类型的互联网药店在药学服务提供方面是否存在差异。
对选定的互联网药店进行调查。数据被录入数据收集表以便进一步分析。数据收集限于3周时间。
允许患者在线购买处方药的美国互联网药店。使用元搜索引擎，通过搜索词“互联网药店”和“互联网药剂师”来识别这些药店。
调查。
对代表各种产品类别的10种常用产品的可得性、处方验证方法和隐私问题进行比较；确定网站的可导航性、药品信息和供应商联系方式以及支付方式。网站被分为“连锁药店分店”、“邮购药店”、“独立药店分店”和“在线药店”。
共审查了33个网站。在通过互联网销售处方药的四类药店之间存在显著差异。大多数药店提供了调查中的所有药品。88%的网站要求患者自行提供处方，75%的网站使用邮件或传真来验证处方完整性。超过50%的网站公布了隐私政策，64%的网站使用了cookies。连锁药店分店订购药品平均需要填写10.2页，而其他所有网站类型只需填写2.4至4页。36%的网站的药品信息写作水平为八年级。超过三分之二的网站提供了医疗保健专业人员的免费电话。近80%的网站接受医疗保险，95%的网站接受信用卡；然而，只有40%的网站对患者或支付信息使用了安全传输机制。
互联网药店提供的服务水平各不相同。关于利用互联网获取药品的政策应侧重于提高消费者信息的隐私性，并确保财务信息的安全传输。
