Implementation of pharmacist-led deprescribing in collaborative primary care settings

Area of Science:

• Pharmacology
• Primary Care Medicine
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Pharmacists increasingly share prescribing duties in primary care.
• No single primary care team member has led medication deprescribing efforts.
• Deprescribing involves the supervised withdrawal of medications no longer needed.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the implementation of pharmacist-led deprescribing in collaborative primary care settings.
• To evaluate the acceptability and effectiveness of this intervention.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the seven components of knowledge translation for intervention design.
• Engaged patients and stakeholders to shape the deprescribing intervention.
• Implemented and evaluated the intervention in three Canadian primary care clinics.

Main Results:

• Pharmacist-led deprescribing was acceptable to both patients and healthcare professionals.
• The intervention successfully reduced the number of medications considered to have more risk than benefit.
• Measures included medication appropriateness, patient satisfaction, and healthcare professional satisfaction.

Conclusions:

• Pharmacist-led deprescribing is a successful model in primary care settings.
• Further research is needed for wider implementation and evaluation of pharmacist-led deprescribing strategies.