The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) said Wednesday that it would provide "prior information" for 6,237 doctors likely to prescribe methylphenidate, a narcotic and psychotropic drug treating ADHD to encourage their proper prescription and use.

The ministry will analyze the prescription information of methylphenidate for two recent months (May and June) in the integrated drug management system and send electronic "warning" documents to doctors who are suspected of prescription abuse via KakaoTalk and text messages.

The prescription criteria for suspected abuse and misuse are based on the “Measures to Prevent Misuse of Methylphenidate.”

The ministry prepared the draft “Guidelines for Preventing Misuse of Methylphenidate” after collecting opinions from relevant societies and associations, including the Korean Medical Association, the Korean Pharmaceutical Association, the Korean Psychiatric Association, and the Korean Society of Neuropsychiatry based on the current “Guidelines for Safe Use of ADHD Treatment.”

The ministry will quickly work out the “Measures to Prevent Misuse of Methylphenidate” and reflect them on related regulations. Based on this, the agency plans to take administrative measures, such as prescription and medication prohibition orders, if prescriptions falling under these measures are continuously prescribed without medical justification.

"We will continue to actively work to create an environment where people can safely use medical narcotics by providing information and administrative measures for prescribers concerned about the misuse of medical narcotics, as well as strengthening on-site surveillance," the ministry said.