Evaluating the reliability of drug interaction checkers in psychiatric prescription safety: A comparative analysis

Abstract

Drug-drug interactions (DDIs) pose significant risks in psychiatric care due to the complexity of polypharmacy and the sensitivity of  psychotropic drugs. This study evaluates the reliability of six widely used DDI checker tools—Medscape, Epocrates, Lexi-Drug, DrugBank,  Drugs.com, and WEBMD—in detecting potential DDIs in psychiatric prescriptions at the Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital (FPNH)  Maiduguri. The analysis of 541 psychiatric prescriptions revealed a low kappa agreement (0.012) across tools, highlighting variability in  detection rates and raising concerns regarding their consistency. Findings suggest that while each checker has unique strengths, reliance  on a single tool may lead to clinically significant interactions being overlooked. Recommendations for clinical practice include  the strategic use of multiple DDI checkers and improved protocols for DDI management in psychiatric care as well as regular training for   healthcare providers in both clinical and technological skills to ensure accurate clinical decision-making.