Dataset Information

Deprescribing medications for older adults in the primary care context: A mixed studies review.

ABSTRACT:

Aims

This review investigates the factors that influence deprescribing of medications in primary care from the perspective of general practitioners (GPs) and community-living older adults.

Methods

A mixed studies review structure was adopted searching Scopus, CINAHL, PsychINFO, ProQuest, and PubMed from January 2000 to December 2017. A manual search of reference lists was also conducted. Studies were included if they were original research available in English and explored general deprescribing rather than deprescribing of a specific class of medications. The Mixed Methods Assessment Tool was used to assess the quality of studies, and content analysis generated common categories across studies.

Results

Thirty-eight articles were included, and 7 key categories were identified. The review found that the factors that influence deprescribing are similar across and within health systems and mostly act as barriers. These factors remained unchanged across the review period. The structural organisation of health systems remains poorly suited to facilitate deprescribing. Individual knowledge gaps of both GPs and older adults influence practices and attitudes towards deprescribing, and significant communication gaps occur between GPs and specialists and between GPs and older adults. As a result, deprescribing decision making is characterised by uncertainty, and deprescribing is often considered only when medication problems have already arisen. Trust plays a complex role, acting as both a barrier and facilitator of deprescribing.

Conclusions

Deprescribing is influenced by many factors. Despite recent interest, little change has occurred. Multilevel strategies aimed at reforming aspects of the health system and managing uncertainty at the practice and individual level, notably reducing knowledge limitations and closing communications gaps, may achieve change.

SUBMITTER: Gillespie RJ

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6266366 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Deprescribing medications for older adults in the primary care context: A mixed studies review.

Gillespie Robyn J RJ Harrison Lindsey L Mullan Judy J

Health science reports 20180510 7

<h4>Aims</h4>This review investigates the factors that influence deprescribing of medications in primary care from the perspective of general practitioners (GPs) and community-living older adults.<h4>Methods</h4>A mixed studies review structure was adopted searching Scopus, CINAHL, PsychINFO, ProQuest, and PubMed from January 2000 to December 2017. A manual search of reference lists was also conducted. Studies were included if they were original research available in English and explored general ...[more]

PMID: 30623083

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Project description:Background/objectivesGuideline-based management of cardiovascular disease often involves prescribing multiple medications, which contributes to polypharmacy and risk for adverse drug events in older adults. Deprescribing is a potential strategy to mitigate these risks. We sought to characterize and compare clinician perspectives regarding deprescribing cardiovascular medications across three specialties.DesignNational cross-sectional survey.SettingAmbulatory.ParticipantsRandom sample of geriatricians, general internists, and cardiologists from the American College of Physicians.MeasurementsElectronic survey assessing clinical practice of deprescribing cardiovascular medications, reasons and barriers to deprescribing, and choice of medications to deprescribe in hypothetical clinical cases.ResultsIn each specialty, 750 physicians were surveyed, with a response rate of 26% for geriatricians, 26% for general internists, and 12% for cardiologists. Over 80% of respondents within each specialty reported that they had recently considered deprescribing a cardiovascular medication. Adverse drug reactions were the most common reason for deprescribing for all specialties. Geriatricians also commonly reported deprescribing in the setting of limited life expectancy. Barriers to deprescribing were shared across specialties and included concerns about interfering with other physicians' treatment plans and patient reluctance. In hypothetical cases, over 90% of physicians in each specialty chose to deprescribe when patients experienced adverse drug reactions. Geriatricians were most likely and cardiologists were least likely to consider deprescribing cardiovascular medications in cases of limited life expectancy (all P < .001), such as recurrent metastatic cancer (84% of geriatricians, 68% of general internists, and 45% of cardiologists), Alzheimer dementia (92% of geriatricians, 81% of general internists, and 59% of cardiologists), or significant functional impairment (83% of geriatricians, 68% of general internists, and 45% of cardiologists).ConclusionsWhile barriers to deprescribing cardiovascular medications are shared across specialties, reasons for deprescribing, especially in the setting of limited life expectancy, varied. Implementing deprescribing will require improved processes for both physician-physician and physician-patient communication. J Am Geriatr Soc 68:78-86, 2019.

Project description:BackgroundIt is well known that older adults are high users of the health care system. Older adults with chronic conditions receive care from multiple providers, across multiple settings, and this care is often unorganized and confusing. In 2005, Ontario established a model of inter-professional primary care (family health teams) with the aim of providing enhanced interdisciplinary primary care to patients. Primary care requires an in-depth understanding of the operations of primary care teams and their relationships with other community services. The aim of this study was to develop a deeper understanding of the current operations of two family health teams in Ontario, including their current processes for referrals, information sharing, and engagement of patients in decision-making.MethodsFocus group and individual semi-structured interviews with health care providers were conducted. Purposeful sampling was used to ensure information was obtained from different professional perspectives. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Using NVivo 10, data were analyzed using line by line thematic analysis techniques. A cluster technique was then applied to group similar codes into themes.ResultsThree focus group interviews (involving 4-6 health care providers/focus group) and six individual interviews were conducted with health care providers from two primary care teams and surrounding community care organizations. Six key themes were identified: 1) challenges engaging older adults in decisions about their care; 2) who is responsible for coordinating the care? 3) fragmented information sharing between health care providers; 4) lack of standardized referral processes and follow-up; 5) identifying services in the community for older adults; and 6) caring for older adults in rural communities.ConclusionsThe results of this study provide an in-depth understanding of the current context in which the primary care teams are currently operating. Improved primary care will require stronger processes of coordination, greater knowledge of and connections with other community services, and enhanced patient engagement processes. This information provides a helpful basis for implementing interventions in primary care.

Project description:Background:Polypharmacy is common in hospitalized older adults. Deprescribing interventions are not well described in the acute-care setting. The objective of this study was to describe a hospital-based, patient-centered deprescribing protocol (Shed-MEDS) and report pilot results. Methods:This was a pilot study set in one academic medical center in the United States. Participants consisted of a convenience sample of 40 Medicare-eligible, hospitalized patients with at least five prescribed medications. A deprescribing protocol (Shed-MEDS) was implemented among 20 intervention and 20 usual care control patients during their hospital stay. The primary outcome was the total number of medications deprescribed from hospital enrollment. Deprescribed was defined as medication termination or dose reduction. Enrollment medications reflected all prehospital medications and active in-hospital medications. Baseline characteristics and outcomes were compared between the intervention and usual care groups using simple logistic or linear regression for categorical and continuous measures, respectively. Results:There was no significant difference between groups in mean age, sex or Charlson comorbidity index. The intervention and control groups had a comparable number of medications at enrollment, 25.2 (±6.3) and 23.4 (±3.8), respectively. The number of prehospital medications in each group was 13.3 (±4.6) and 15.3 (±4.6), respectively. The Shed-MEDS protocol compared with usual care significantly increased the mean number of deprescribed medications at hospital discharge and reduced the total medication burden by 11.6 versus 9.1 (p = 0.032) medications. The deprescribing intervention was associated with a difference of 4.6 [95% confidence interval (CI) 2.5-6.7, p < 0.001] in deprescribed medications and a 0.5 point reduction (95% CI -0.01 to 1.1) in the drug burden index. Conclusions:A hospital-based, patient-centered deprescribing intervention is feasible and may reduce the medication burden in older adults.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Multimorbidity and polypharmacy are very common in older adults in primary care. Ideally, general practitioners (GPs), should regularly review medication lists to identify inappropriate medication(s) and, where appropriate, deprescribe. However, it remains challenging to deprescribe given time constraints and few recommendations from guidelines. Further, patient related barriers and enablers to deprescribing have to be accounted for. The aim of this study was to identify barriers and enablers to deprescribing as reported by older adults with polypharmacy and multimorbidity. METHODS:We conducted a survey among participants aged ?70?years, with multimorbidity (?3 chronic conditions) and polypharmacy (?5 chronic medications). We invited Swiss GPs, to recruit eligible patients who then completed a paper-based survey on demographics, medications and chronic conditions. We used the revised Patients' Attitudes Towards Deprescribing (rPATD) questionnaire and added twelve additional Likert scale questions and two open-ended questions to assess barriers and enablers towards deprescribing, which we coded and categorized into meaningful themes. RESULT:Sixty four Swiss GPs consented to recruit 5-6 patients each and returned 300 participant responses. Participants were 79.1?years (SD 5.7), 47% female, 34% lived alone, and 86% managed their medications themselves. Sixty-seven percent of participants took 5-9 regular medicines and 24% took ?10 medicines. The majority of participants (77%) were willing to deprescribe one or more of their medicines if their doctor said it was possible. There was no association with sex, age or the number of medicines and willingness to deprescribe. After adjustment for baseline characteristics, there was a strong positive association between willingness to deprescribe and saying that because they have a good relationship with their GP, they would feel that deprescribing was safe OR 11.3 (95% CI: 4.64-27.3) and agreeing that they would be willing to deprescribe if new studies showed an avoidable risk OR 8.0 (95% CI 3.79-16.9). From the open questions, the most mentioned barriers towards deprescribing were patients feeling well on their current medicines and being convinced that they need all their medicines. CONCLUSIONS:Most older adults with polypharmacy are willing to deprescribe. GPs may be able to increase deprescribing by building trust with their patients and communicating evidence about the risks of medication use.

Project description:Background: Older persons with frailty take multiple medications and are vulnerable to inappropriate prescribing. Objective: This study assesses the impact of a team-based, pharmacist-led structured medication review process in primary care on the appropriateness of medications taken by older adults living with frailty. Methods: This was a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design in 6 primary care practices within an academic clinic in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. We enrolled community dwelling older adults 65 years and older with frailty who have polypharmacy and/or 2 or more chronic conditions (ie, high-risk group for drug-related issues). The intervention was a structured pharmacist-led medication review using evidence-based explicit criteria (ie, Beers and STOPP/START criteria) and implicit criteria (ie, pharmacist expertise) for potentially inappropriate prescribing, done in the context of a primary care team-based seniors' program. We measured the changes in the number of medications pre- and postmedication review, number of medications satisfying explicit criteria of START and STOPP/Beers and determined the association with frailty level. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics (a priori significance level of P < .05). Results: A total of 54 participants (61.1% females, mean age 81.7 years [SD = 6.74]) enrolled April 2017 to May 2018 and 52 participants completed the medication review process (2 lost to hospitalization). Drug-related problems noted on medication review were untreated conditions (61.1%), inappropriate medications (57.4%), and unnecessary therapy (40.7%). No significant changes in total number of medications taken by patients before and after, but the intervention significantly decreased number of inappropriate medications (1.15 meds pre to 0.9 meds post; P = .006). Conclusion: A pharmacist-led medication review is a strategy that can be implemented in primary care to address inappropriate medications.

Project description:BackgroundPolypharmacy and use of inappropriate medications have been linked to increased risk of falls, hospitalizations, cognitive impairment, and death. The primary objective of this review was to evaluate the effectiveness, comparative effectiveness, and harms of deprescribing interventions among community-dwelling older adults.MethodsWe searched OVID MEDLINE Embase, CINAHL, and the Cochrane Library from 1990 through February 2019 for controlled clinical trials comparing any deprescribing intervention to usual care or another intervention. Primary outcomes were all-cause mortality, hospitalizations, health-related quality of life, and falls. The secondary outcome was use of potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs). Interventions were categorized as comprehensive medication review, educational initiatives, and computerized decision support. Data abstracted by one investigator were verified by another. We used the Cochrane criteria to rate risk of bias for each study and the GRADE system to determine certainty of evidence (COE) for primary outcomes.ResultsThirty-eight low and medium risk of bias clinical trials were included. Comprehensive medication review may have reduced all-cause mortality (OR 0.74, 95% CI: 0.58 to 0.95, I2 = 0, k = 12, low COE) but probably had little to no effect on falls, health-related quality of life, or hospitalizations (low to moderate COE). Nine of thirteen trials reported fewer PIMs in the intervention group. Educational interventions probably had little to no effect on all-cause mortality, hospitalizations, or health-related quality of life (low to moderate COE). The effect on falls was uncertain (very low COE). All 11 education trials that included PIMs reported fewer in the intervention than in the control groups. Two of 4 computerized decision support trials reported fewer PIMs in the intervention arms; none included any primary outcomes.DiscussionIn community-dwelling people aged 65 years and older, medication deprescribing interventions may provide small reductions in mortality and use of potentially inappropriate medications.Registry informationPROSPERO - CRD42019132420.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Managing polypharmacy is a challenge for healthcare systems globally. It is also a health inequality concern as it can expose some of the most vulnerable in society to unnecessary medications and adverse drug-related events. Care for most patients with multimorbidity and polypharmacy occurs in primary care. Safe deprescribing interventions can reduce exposure to inappropriate polypharmacy. However, these are not fully accepted or routinely implemented. AIM:To identify barriers and facilitators to safe deprescribing interventions for adults with multimorbidity and polypharmacy in primary care. DESIGN & SETTING:A systematic review of studies published from 2000, examining safe deprescribing interventions for adults with multimorbidity and polypharmacy. METHOD:A search of electronic databases: MEDLINE, Embase, Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINHAL), Cochrane, and Health Management Information Consortium (HMIC) from inception to 26 Feb 2019, using an agreed search strategy. This was supplemented by handsearching of relevant journals, and screening of reference lists and citations of included studies. RESULTS:In total, 40 studies from 14 countries were identified. Cultural and organisational barriers included: a culture of diagnosing and prescribing; evidence-based guidance focused on single diseases; a lack of evidence-based guidance for the care of older people with multimorbidities; and a lack of shared communication, decision-making systems, tools, and resources. Interpersonal and individual-level barriers included: professional etiquette; fragmented care; prescribers' and patients' uncertainties; and gaps in tailored support. Facilitators included: prudent prescribing; greater availability and acceptability of non-pharmacological alternatives; resources; improved communication, collaboration, knowledge, and understanding; patient-centred care; and shared decision-making. CONCLUSION:A whole systems, patient-centred approach to safe deprescribing interventions is required, involving key decision-makers, healthcare professionals, patients, and carers.

Dataset Information

Deprescribing medications for older adults in the primary care context: A mixed studies review.

Aims

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Deprescribing medications for older adults in the primary care context: A mixed studies review.

Similar Datasets

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