Polypharmacy management among Australian veterans: improving prescribing through the Australian Department of Veterans' Affairs' prescriber feedback programme.

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Older patients are potentially at risk from the effects of polypharmacy (PP) and/or drug-drug interactions. AIMS: To examine the effects of a targeted patient-specific prescriber feedback programme on patients prescribed more than 19 individual medications over the 3-month study period. METHODS: The Commonwealth Department of Veterans' Affairs commissioned a review of Repatriation Pharmaceutical Benefit Scheme claims data to identify patients potentially at risk of drug injury through either PP (> or =20 unique medications during 3 months) or clinically significant drug interactions (DI). Dispensing information for the patient at risk, relevant clinical guidelines and a personali..