Optimizing Drug-Therapy in Patients, 80 Years and Older, in Order to Reduce Drug-Related Morbidity and Usage of Secondary Care - a Randomized Controlled Trial

Optimising drug-therapy for patients, 80 years and older, to reduce hospital visits

Background and Objective:

Results from a pilot-study performed in 2004 at the Academic Hospital, Uppsala, including 214 consecutive patients (80 years old or older) showed that 9.4%-13.6% of the patients were acutely admitted to hospital due to a drug related problem1. Other similar international studies show that the frequency of drug-related hospital admissions stands for at least 14% of the acute admissions (14%-30.4%). Of these admissions it was estimated that 32%-69% were preventable 2,3,4.

A study from Antrim Hospital, Northern Ireland, showed that pharmacists´ involvement in the health care team can reduce the number of acute hospital admissions and improve quality of drug use5.

In view of these findings this study was initiated in 2005 with fundings from the Drug and Therapeutics committee, the County Council of Uppsala, the Division of Acute-Medicine and the Pharmacy Department at the Academic Hospital in Uppsala