Pharmacy tech

Medscape recently reported that 83.8 percent of older patients receive at least one potentially inappropriate medication (PIM) or have a potential prescribing omission (PPO) at the time of discharge, according to a study published in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology.

The study also found that patients with at least one PIM were significantly more likely to be readmitted three or more times and patients with at least one PPO were significantly more likely to die.

Researchers said that most physicians use their clinical judgement rather than strict criteria when prescribing medications leading up to discharge, said Andrew Dunn, MD, MPH, FACP, SFHM, chair of the American College of Physicians Board of Regents and professor of medicine, chief, Division of Hospital Medicine, Department of Medicine, Mount Sinai Health System, New York City. Dunn, who was not part of the study, also said, “Many clinicians pay close attention to the medications they prescribe to older adults, but there is a lack of a standardized process to reduce the risks of overprescribing and underprescribing.”

“Great Plains Quality Innovation Network care coordination and medication safety team members work with our partners to increase use of evidenced-based criteria to improve prescribing practices. An example of this is the Choosing Wisely Campaign which provides guidelines from multiple national organizations regarding many things, including potential inappropriate medications,” stated Jayme Steig, PharmD, RPh; Quality Improvement Manager with Great Plains QIN.

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