Consumer perceptions of the OTC Coach: A clinical decision support system aimed at improving the safe use of over-the-counter medications.

BACKGROUND

There are more than 300,000 over-the-counter (OTC) medications on the market making it challenging for consumers to select safe and effective products to treat their minor ailments.

OBJECTIVE

We sought to identify consumer perceptions about the use of a clinical decision support system, OTC Coach, to help them make informed decisions about OTC medications.

METHODS

We developed a prototype of the OTC Coach that focused on treating fever in adults. We recruited community members who were 18 years and older via our institutional research website. Participants completed a 30- to 45-minute video interview in which they initially discussed their perceptions and experiences of using OTC medications. We subsequently shared the OTC Coach prototype and sought feedback related to the content and format of the tool. We asked participants to rate their likelihood of using the tool to treat a new symptom (10-point Likert scale, 1 = not at all to 10 = extremely likely) and conducted a qualitative and quantitative analysis of these findings.

RESULTS

Among 20 participants, 11 (55%) were female, 10 (50%) were white, and the mean age was 47.9 years (range 18-81 years). Participants reported that the tool was easy to understand. The questions reported as being extremely important by most participants were allergies (n = 17, 85%), increased risk of bleeding (n = 15, 75%), temperature (n = 12, 60%), and duration of symptoms (n = 12, 60%). Three-fourths of participants (n = 15) selected a score of 7 or higher when asked about their likelihood of using this tool for a new symptom. Concerns that were raised included ensuring that the tool accounted for their personal health history, data storage, and accessibility.

CONCLUSION

Consumers were interested in using an electronic tool to determine if their symptoms can be self-treated and, if so, which medications are appropriate.