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Deprescribing in Outpatient Internal Medicine Practices

Not Applicable
Not yet recruiting
Conditions
Deprescribing
Registration Number
NCT07226960
Lead Sponsor
Wake Forest University Health Sciences
Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of pharmacist-led medication reviews and deprescribing or de-escalation interventions on reducing the number of medications, falls, and hospitalizations, and improvement in quality of life in geriatric patients.

Detailed Description

With increasing age, key pharmacokinetic processes such as first-pass metabolism, bioavailability, drug distribution, and clearance, are affected, necessitating dose adjustments and careful medication management. Despite these risks, medication regimens in elderly patients are often left unchanged over time. Deprescribing, the intentional reduction or discontinuation of medications, has been shown to improve quality of life, reduce fall risk, minimize cognitive impairment, and decrease adverse drug interactions. In this analysis, the PharmD will perform a comprehensive medication review with the patient and collaborate with the provider and patient through shared decision making to deprescribe and/or dose reduce medication therapy where risks may outweigh benefits for the patient.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
NOT_YET_RECRUITING
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
100
Inclusion Criteria
  • 75 years or older
  • taking 6 or more medications
Exclusion Criteria
  • patients in hospice or palliative care
  • in Skilled Nursing Facility
  • receiving cancer/oncology treatment

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Change in number of medicationsMonth 3

Change in number of medications

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Change in Medication Appropriateness Index scoresMonth 3

The Medication Appropriateness Index (MAI) score is a quantitative measure of prescribing appropriateness, where lower scores indicate more appropriate medication use, and higher scores indicate less appropriate use.

Each criterion is rated on a 3-point scale:

Appropriate (score of 0 or a low value) Each criterion is assigned a weight ranging from 1 to 3, with a maximum total score of 18 possible per drug.

A summated score can be calculated for a patient by combining the scores for all their medications. This summated score is not standardized, meaning the potential total score depends on the number of medications the patient is taking. A score of 0 for a medication indicates ideal or appropriate prescribing for that specific criterion. Higher scores are associated with potentially inappropriate medication (PIM) use, increased risk of adverse drug events (ADEs), higher rates of unscheduled ambulatory or emergency department visits, and lower health-related quality of life.

Change in Quality of life scoresMonth 3

The Lübeck Medication Satisfaction Questionnaire (LMSQ) is scored by calculating the average score for each of its six subscales, which are based on three Likert-scale items each. Patients rate their agreement with each statement on a four-point scale (1=strongly disagree, 4=strongly agree), but items phrased negatively must be reverse-scored before calculating the subscale average. To get the subscale score, you sum the three items' scores and divide by three.

Number of documented fallsMonth 3

Number of documented falls

Number of documented hospitalizationsMonth 3

Number of documented hospitalizations

Number of documented visits to Primary Care Physician officeMonth 3

Number of documented visits to Primary Care Physician office

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Wake Forest University Health Sciences

🇺🇸

Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States

Wake Forest University Health Sciences
🇺🇸Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States
Anna Gambrell, PharmD
Contact
980-505-4718
anna.gambrell@advocatehealth.org

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