Tools and tactics for postdischarge medication management interventions.

Area of Science:

• Pharmacy Practice
• Health Services Research
• Medication Management

Background:

• Effective medication management during care transitions is crucial for patient outcomes.
• Hospital readmissions, particularly among older and sicker patients, pose a significant healthcare challenge.
• Pharmacy staff play a vital role in optimizing medication use and adherence.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify interventions for organizational pharmacist-leaders and frontline pharmacy staff.
• To optimize peri- and postdischarge medication management.
• To reduce hospital readmissions through pharmacy-led interventions.

Main Methods:

• Systematic construction of an evidence-based toolkit using findings from systematic overviews of reviews.
• Categorization of interventions as tools (e.g., diagrams, templates) or tactics (e.g., dose simplification).
• Selection based on potential to improve postdischarge medication management and reduce readmissions.

Main Results:

• Identification of 23 tools and 2 tactics for optimizing medication management.
• Tools include patient education, text messaging, and phone calls.
• Tactics include dose simplification and monetary incentives.

Conclusions:

• A range of tools and tactics are available to enhance peri- and postdischarge medication management.
• Pharmacy leaders and staff can implement these interventions to improve patient outcomes.
• These strategies have the potential to reduce hospital readmissions.