NPS Rational Assessment of Drugs and Research (RADAR) provides timely, independent, evidence-based information on new drugs, research and Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) listings, to help health professionals:
- Assess how a new drug might (or might not) fit with current treatment
- Understand how the drug compares with existing therapies
- Understand why a drug has a particular PBS listing - if a drug is a Restricted Benefit or requires an Authority, the evidence for a benefit and harm behind these restrictions is described
- Be aware if key issues when prescribing new drugs
Genie allows you to easily access these documents through the software, saving you time and energy searching for these.
NPS RADAR is published in line with updates to the Schedule of Pharmaceutical Benefits.
NPS Patient Information Leaflets (PILs) have been integrated into Genie to provide patient-relevant information that can be discussed during consultation and printed for the patient.
NPS usage statistics can be recorded with your permission as you access either RADAR or PILs. Once a month, the following information is reported to NPS:
- Names of the documents you viewed
- How you accessed the documents (e.g. as a popup)
- When you viewed them, and for how long
This data is submitted on a de-identified basis — in other words NPS will not be able to ascertain the identity of the person who submitted it.
The NPS RADAR Reviews are available through:
- An easy-to-read, condensed Alert
- A detailed review for a specific drug
- A complete list of Reviews available in Genie
NPS RADAR Alert
When a relevant drug is being prescribed to a patient (see Prescribing for more information), if the “Enable NPS RADAR Alert” option is ticked in the User Preferences the 'NPS RADAR Alert' window will appear. This window details briefly the prescribing tips, safety notes and dosing information for this particular drug. This window will only appear for the first three times a relevant drug is prescribed. The NPS RADAR Alert will remain active for 12 months after publication.
Clicking on the More Button in this window will open a detailed NPS RADAR Review window for this specific drug. Ticking the “Do not show NPS RADAR for this medicine again” option in this window will prevent the Alert from appearing automatically when the drug is prescribed again.
Detailed NPS RADAR Review
The detailed NPS RADAR Review window can be accessed from the Clinical window by clicking the NPS RADAR 
icon or through the Prescribing window by clicking on the NPS RADAR button.
This window provides you with a detailed review of this specific drug.
NPS RADAR Documents
The complete list of NPS RADAR Documents can be accessed via Open > NPS RADAR Documents. By default, the most recent RADAR reviews that currently have active popup alerts will be displayed in this window. RADAR reviews are current for 12 months. Double-clicking on an item in this list will display the relevant information in the preview window.
To view all NPS RADAR documents in Genie, click on the Open all RADAR documents button in the top left of the window. All reviews are available to be viewed by clicking on this button regardless of how long ago they were published.
You can also access the Online Version and the Medicine Update of the selected drug if the information was made available by NPS by clicking on the respective buttons at the top of the window. Medicine Update provides similar information to NPS RADAR, but in a format designed and written for patients and carers.
Patient Information Leaflets (PILs) are produced by NPS to assist health professionals in communicating essential treatment messages to patients and are best used in conjunction with the patient consultation. They cover a number of topics such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, Type 2 Diabetes, Upper Respiratory Tract Infections, and Antibiotics. They have been designed to be complementary to the Consumer Medicines Information (CMI) leaflets which contain specific information regarding a particular medication.
To access the NPS PILs documents, go to Open > NPS PILs Document. The PILs will appear as a list on the left-hand side of the window. Double-clicking the document title will allow you to preview the document on the right-hand side of the window.
Automatic Update
By default, Genie will check regularly for updates to NPS documents, which are then downloaded automatically. NPS RADAR updates are checked/downloaded weekly, while NPS PILs are checked/download monthly. If an update is found, the following prompt will appear:
If you would like Genie to remember your decision in the future – i.e. you would like Genie to always download any updates it finds, or you want it to never do so – tick the Remember my decision for further updates checkbox and click Yes or No as appropriate.
Once ticked, you can change this preference via the Clinical tab of the User Preferences window (File > User Preferences).
Manual Update
NPS documents can be updated manually via the Software Updates window (Special > Software Updates). Tick the appropriate NPS download option and click Install X Item(s).
If the Software Updates window is inaccessible for any reason, the NPS updates can be accessed from the Downloads section of the Genie website.
Save the downloaded files to the Genie folder on the server computer. Depending on the server platform, the default location for this folder will be:
- Windows: C\Genie\
- Macintosh: Macintosh HD: Applications: Genie
Once the files have been downloaded to the appropriate folder, Genie will prompt you to install them the next time it is launched.
Submission of Usage Statistics
The first time you access any NPS document, either RADAR or PIL, you will be asked for permission to collect data about your usage of NPS information. Data submitted to NPS includes the name of the documents you have viewed, how the documents were accessed (e.g. as a popup), when you viewed the documents and for how long.
You have the option to select:
Skip - Allows you to not make a choice at this time. However, you will be asked each time an NPS document is accessed until you choose to agree or not.
I agree - You consent and information will be recorded and submitted monthly to NPS.
I do not agree - You do not consent and information will not be recorded or submitted to NPS.
If you change your mind, you can change your choice in the Clinical tab of the User Preferences window.