All Italian physicians, nurses, and pharmacists have recently received, free of charge, the Guida all’uso dei farmaci per i bambini (Guide to the use of drugs for children).¹ Considering the number of health professionals involved (about 600 000), the methodology followed, the completeness of the contents, the size of the book produced, and its free availability, this initiative, set up under the auspices (technical and economic) of the Italian Ministry of Health, is unique at the national and international levels. This formulary can be considered part of the cultural trial begun in the mid 1990s by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health and the Neonatal and Paediatric Pharmacists Group, which led to the creation of Medicines for children² in 1999, a tool characterised by an evidence based approach and designed to assist those who prescribe, dispense, or administer medicines to children. While work was in progress on the first Italian Guide and the second UK …