Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #106506

Janice L. Feinberg, PharmD, JD, American Society of Consultant Pharmacists Research & Education Foundation, One East Delaware Place, Suite 27H, Chicago, IL 60611, 312-202-9914, jfeinberg@ascp.com

Presentation Abstract #4

Pharmacist Intervention to Improve Appropriate, Effective, and Safe Use of Medications in Nursing Facilities

30 minutes

This presentation will discuss a research initiative to test a novel intervention by long-term care pharmacists, which includes prospective medication review, direct communication with the prescriber, pharmacist assessment of the patient, and formalized pharmaceutical care planning for elderly patients at highest risk for medication-related problems. This study is testing the effectiveness of the intervention in reducing potentially inappropriate medication use, adverse drug events, and the under-treatment of common diseases experienced by nursing facility residents in twenty-six nursing facilities in North Carolina. The study is also quantifying the impact of the intervention on the efficiency, productivity, workload, and satisfaction of the pharmacists and staff of the nursing facilities and differentiating nursing facilities that successfully incorporate the new intervention into ongoing routines from those that do not. Intervention materials, including Nursing Alert Cards for medications potentially inappropriate for use in the geriatric population, will be presented.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this presentation, the attendee will be able to

• List five factors that place elderly patients at highest risk for medication-related problems;
• List the most common drug classes potentially inappropriate for use in the geriatric population;
• Describe how nursing education interventions can reduce the use of potentially inappropriate medications in nursing facilities.

Keywords: Drug Safety, Nursing Homes

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.