Age and Ageing has published new research to indicate that comprehensive medicine reviews completed routinely have been associated with a lower risk of death of care home residents. Statistics are positive emerging from data collected in Australia, and reveal that those who received medicine reviews 6-12 months after entering a care home, were 4.4% less likely to die over the following 12 months.
Particularly, residents exposed to polypharmacy (those taking nine or more medicines,) had a death risk which was 6.6% lower among those with a medicine review as compared to those without.
Also known as residential medication management review, the medicine review involves a pharmacist visiting the care home directly in order to obtain the medication history of a patient, engage with the resident themselves and their care team staff, and then provide any education. A liaison with the GP is also appropriate, and the pharmacist can then make recommendations about any medication changes to reduce potential harm and maximise benefits.