Nurses to get drug guide on smartphone app

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AMBLER, Pa., April 29 (UPI) -- A U.S. publisher of the Nursing 2013 Drug Handbook said beginning in May it will provide the first mobile app version of the drug guide for nurses.

Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, publisher of the top-selling drug guide since its inception in 1980, said the new smartphone app includes almost 900 drug monographs addressing more than 3,000 generic and brand name drugs.

The app can be used to search for drugs alphabetically, by pharmacologic class and by therapeutic class. The full version includes a dosage calculator, pill images, detailed monographs and weekly drug updates, all in an intuitive, easy-to-navigate program, Lippincott said.

The Nursing Drug Handbook app will be available for the iPhone, iPad and iTouch and Android devices early next month, Lippincott said.

A recent survey by Lippincott of nearly 4,000 nurses and nursing students found 85 percent of nurses and students said they wanted a smartphone app version of the drug guide. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins is part of Wolters Kluwer Health, a provider of information, business intelligence and point-of-care solutions for the healthcare industry.

"Nurses have long relied on our pocket-sized guide to support clinical decisions, but today's nurse wants mobile access to the most current information possible," Judy McCann, chief nursing officer of Wolters Kluwer Health, said in a statement.

The survey also found 71 percent of nursing professionals used a smartphone for their job and 66 percent of students used one in nursing school.