Physician patient communication failure facilitates medication errors in older polymedicated patients with multiple...

Area of Science:

• Geriatric Medicine
• Patient Safety
• Health Communication

Background:

• Communication errors between physicians and patients contribute to medication mistakes.
• Polymedicated older adults with multiple comorbidities are at high risk.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the frequency of physician-patient communication errors.
• To determine the incidence of these errors in self-administered drug mistakes.

Main Methods:

• Descriptive, cross-sectional study.
• Interviews with 382 polymedicated patients (≥5 drugs) aged over 65 with multiple comorbidities.
• Analysis of patient-reported data on physician communication, medication errors, and consequences.

Main Results:

• 75% of patients reported a medication error in the past year; 4% reported four or more.
• Errors often involved dosage, drug appearance, or misunderstanding instructions.
• Factors associated with errors included multiple comorbidities, polypharmacy, prescription changes, and poor physician communication (e.g., not feeling heard, loss of trust).

Conclusions:

• Medication errors in polymedicated patients with comorbidities pose a significant risk.
• Healthcare professionals must address these communication gaps.
• Routine checks for all prescribed medications, including those from other physicians, are recommended.