design & evaluation of a medication therapy management program to improve patient safety in medicare beneficiaries

Conditions: Chronic Illness; Adverse Effects; Medication Errors; Elderly Patients

Summary: the purpose of this study is to determine if a medication therapy management program designed to reconcile a patient's medications and identify and resolve drug related problems can reduce adverse drug events and other measures of safety and improve patient satisfaction.

this study will be a multicenter, prospective, randomized study of usual care (arm 1; control group) compared with usual care plus medication reconciliation by patient interview and a drug related problem assessment (arm 2; basic mtm) and usual care plus medication reconciliation by patient interview with additional information obtained from the patient chart and drug related problem assessment (arm 3; enhance mtm). approximately 600 patients will be enrolled in this study, 200 in each study arm. two hundred potential subjects will be recruited at each of the three participating sites: the uic medical center, baylor health care system, and duke primary care research consortium. for inclusion in the study, patients must be at least 65 years old, primarily uses english for written and oral communication, have 3 or more comorbid conditions from a list of conditions (see table 1 of protocol), have two or more physician office visits at one or more affiliated clinics in the past year, have received 8 or more different chronic prescription medications over the six months prior to the enrollment period, have a telephone line and agree to maintain if for at least 6 months, and have a situation placing him/her at risk for a drug related problem (see protocol for list). subjects unable to demonstrate comprehension of the informed consent, with a terminal condition, or those enrolled in an mtm program where medication reconciliation and/or assessment of drug related problems has occurred in the previous 12 months will be excluded from enrolling in the study. patients in the control group will participate in the baseline study visit, will continue to have access to the regular scheduled physician clinic visit and their prescription filled at the uic pharmacy, and will participate in the telephone survey after the sixth month of the study. patients in the arms 2 and 3 intervention groups will participate in the baseline visit, will be asked to participate in two clinic visits with an mtm clinician, and will be asked to answer two telephone surveys (at 3 months and at 6 months after enrollment).

Eligibility criteria:
inclusion criteria: * be at least 65 years old at enrollment * primarily uses english language for written and oral communication * have three or more comorbid conditions associated with increased healthcare utilization (diabetes mellitus, congestive heart failure, asthma, hypertension, dyslipidemia, copd, coronary artery disease, chronic renal failure, arthritis, depression, dementia, chronic pain, conditions requiring anticoagulation with warfarin) * have visited a physician at one or more of the clinics on a regular basis (defined as two or more clinic visits over one year prior to the study start) for these conditions * have received 6 or more different chronic prescription medications over the six months prior to the enrollment period * have a telephone line and agree to maintain it for at least six months * have one of the following situations placing him/her at risk for a drp (any er visit in past 30 days or urgent care visit in past 30 days leading to a change in medication or change in medication dose; new physician visit in past 30 days; hospitalization in past 30 days; invasive procedure (a procedure requiring substantive changes to medication taking practices or which requires informed consent) in past 30 days; change in medication in past 30 days; three or more providers seen in the past year exclusion criteria: * terminal condition, where life expectancy is less than 6 months * patients already enrolled in an mtm program where medication reconciliation and/or assessment of drps has occurred in the previous 12 months

Keywords: medication therapy management pharmacist chronic care medicare medicaid medication reconciliation adverse drug events drug related problems