About UK Medicines Information

The UKMi Central website is a collaborative venture between the Trent and West Midlands regional Medicines Information services. This reflects the long history of co-operation between these neighbouring regions, which includes co-production of the UK Drugs in Lactation Advisory Service.

Its aim is to improve communication between Midlands MI services and their users, and specifically to

• speed delivery of information to users
• make specialist information more easily available
• enhance awareness of the facilities the services can provide
• provide a central mechanism for local MI centres and related services, such as formulary pharmacists disseminate information of wider interest/relevance

What is the Medicines Information Service?

The NHS Medicines Information (MI) Service is a speciality within the Pharmacy service that supports the safe, effective and efficient use of medicines by provision of information and advice. The service is available to all healthcare professionals in primary and secondary care.

Principal aims are :

• Supporting medicines management within NHS organisations
• Supporting pharmaceutical care of individual patients

The service operates to defined national standards. Services are co-ordinated nationally by the UK Medicines Information Pharmacists' Group.

Who provides the service?

The service is provided by qualified NHS pharmacists who have undertaken additional training in the speciality.

What information is provided?

The MI service provides information and advice on all aspects of the therapeutic use of medicines. These include adverse effects, drug interactions, use in special patient groups (elderly, pregnant and breast feeding women etc), identification, availability and support, pharmacoeconomics and pharmaceutical aspects (e.g. stability, formulation and compatability).

What resources are available?

MI services have access to a wide range of biomedical and pharmaceutical sources of information such as computerised databases, references texts, journals, in-house data, specialist opinion, the pharmaceutical industry and national specialist information and advisory services developed as part of the UK Medicines Information network.

What services are provided?

Regional MI services (Trent and West Midlands) provide :

• Enquiry answering services for health care professionals
• Proactive information e.g. bulletins, new product summaries, current awareness
• Medicines Management support for pharmacy and general managers via horizon scanning, patent expiry data, new product data etc.
• Support for local MI centres via secondary referral of enquiries, training programmes, quality assurance etc.
• A central resource for data relating to medicines

Who uses the service?

Current users include Hospital Doctors, General Practitioners, Hospital and Community Pharmacists, Health Authority Professional Advisers, Hospital and Community Nurses, professions allied to medicine, Dentists, Pharmaceutical/Prescribing Advisers at PCGs/PCTs, Drug and Therapeutics Committees, Pharmacy Managers and other policy makers.

How can I contact the service?

Medicines Information Centres in the UK are organised as a network of regional and local centres. They may be contacted by telephone, letter, e-mail or by personal visit.

If you wish to submit an electronic enquiry to Trent or West Midlands MI Services click here.