Collaborative medication reviews in community pharmacies-Drug-related problems and the process of communicating them with physicians: A retrospective validation study.

Background And Aims: Cooperation between practicing community pharmacists (PPs) and primary care physicians has traditionally been limited, with scarce communication on therapeutic issues. The aim of this study was to assess how PPs communicate in writing with physicians regarding (1) the clinically relevant problems they have identified in patients' medications and (2) recommendations to solve the problems to identify development needs in the communication process.

Methods: This retrospective validation study assessed medication reviews conducted by PPs in collaboration with home care nurses, practice nurses, and physicians for 46 older (≥65 years) home care clients in the Municipality of Lohja, Finland.

Harmonizing the definition of medication reviews for their collaborative implementation and documentation in electronic patient records: A Delphi consensus study.

Background: Medication review practices have evolved internationally in a direction in which not only physicians but also other healthcare professionals conduct medication reviews according to agreed practices. Collaborative practices have increasingly highlighted the need for electronic joint platforms where information on medication regimens and their implementation can be documented, kept updated, and shared.

Objective: The aim of this study was to harmonize the definition of medication reviews and create a unified conceptual basis for their collaborative implementation and documentation in electronic patient records (definition appellation: collaborative medication review).

Medication risk checklist for older adults (LOTTA) - development and validation of a self-assessment tool.

Background: Patient safety strategies highlight patients' own active involvement in ensuring medication safety. A prerequisite for involving patients in their medication therapy is having tools that can assist them in ensuring safe medicine use. Older home-dwelling adults with multiple medications are at high risk for medication-related problems, yet only a few age-specific patient self-administered medication risk screening tools exist.

Self-assessed medication risk factors as part of comprehensive health screening in home-dwelling older adults.

Background: Poor medication management may negatively impact the health and functional capacity of older adults. This cross-sectional study aimed to identify medication-related risk factors in home-dwelling residents using a validated self-assessment as part of comprehensive health screening.

Methods: The data were derived from comprehensive health screening (PORI75) for older adults of 75 years living in Western Finland in 2020 and 2021.

Risk assessment tools for QT prolonging pharmacotherapy in older adults: a systematic review.

Purpose: Many drugs are associated with the risk of QT prolongation and torsades de pointes (TdP), and different risk assessment tools (RATs) are developed to help clinicians to manage related risk. The aim of this systematic review was to summarize the evidence of different RATs for QT prolonging pharmacotherapy.

Methods: A systematic review was conducted using PubMed and Scopus databases.

Policy and vision for community pharmacies in Finland: A roadmap towards enhanced integration and reduced costs.

Finland's community pharmacy system provides an example of a privately-owned regulated system being proactively developed by the profession and its stakeholders. Community pharmacists have a legal duty to promote safe and rational medicine use in outpatient care. The development of professionally oriented practice has been nationally coordinated since the 1990s with the support of a national steering group consisting of professional bodies, authorities, pharmacy schools and continuing education centers.

Enhanced coordination of care to reduce medication risks in older home care clients in primary care: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: As populations are aging, a growing number of home care clients are frail and use multiple, complex medications. Combined with the lack of coordination of care this may pose uncontrolled polypharmacy and potential patient safety risks. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of a care coordination intervention on medication risks identified in drug regimens of older home care clients over a one-year period.

Coordinating resources for prospective medication risk management of older home care clients in primary care: procedure development and RCT study design for demonstrating its effectiveness.

Background: The magnitude of safety risks related to medications of the older adults has been evidenced by numerous studies, but less is known of how to manage and prevent these risks in different health care settings. The aim of this study was to coordinate resources for prospective medication risk management of home care clients ≥ 65 years in primary care and to develop a study design for demonstrating effectiveness of the procedure.

Methods: Health care units involved in the study are from primary care in Lohja, Southern Finland: home care (191 consented clients), the public healthcare center, and a private community pharmacy.