The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently unveiled a new search tool for patients and providers that improves access to data on adverse events associated with drug and biologic products.

The new dashboard, available through the FDA’s Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS), is designed to create easier access to search and isolate detailed information on reports of adverse events.

“By making the FAERS database more easily accessible through the dashboard, the agency’s goal is to better inform patients and healthcare professionals of adverse events reported with drug and biologic products,” said FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, MD. “FAERS can be a valuable tool but it is just one of many data sets that helps inform the agency of possible problems associated with a product.”

The new dashboard enables users to search for and organize data by criteria such as drug/biological product, age of the patient, type of adverse event, year the adverse event occurred or within a specific timeframe. FDA officials said they hope the increased transparency will spur the submission of more detailed and complete reports from consumers, healthcare professionals and others.