A Patient's Guide to the Safety of Medicines
This is a short introduction to the safety of medicines which is written in lay language and intended for patients who are concerned about potential side-effects of medicines. The authors are Dr. Patrick Waller, Consultant to the Drug Safety Research Unit, Southampton and Professor Sir Michael Rawlins, Chairman of the National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), Emeritus Professor of Clinical Pharmacology, University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Trustee, Drug Safety Research Unit.
The guide attempts to provide general answers to the following questions:
Will the treatment have side-effects?
What should I do if I have side-effects?
Where can I get more information?
Acknowledgements: We are grateful to Patricia Wilkie, Peter Arlett, Louise Wood and Saad Shakir for valuable comments made on previous drafts of this guide.