This article reports mixed results of a two-year mentor-implemented feasibility study designed to improve medication reconciliation practices in rural Veterans Affairs hospitals. The authors highlight facilitators and barriers to implementing their evidence-based intervention in smaller hospitals.

… improvement interventions in real-world settings. A WebM&M commentary discussed the importance of medication …

… Journal of the American Geriatrics Society … J Am Geriatr Soc … This health system performance study …

… Jt Comm J Qual Patient Saf … Jt Comm J Qual Patient Saf … This commentary describes a medication …

Although pharmacists have been shown to be effective at preventing medication errors in the inpatient setting, this prospective study found that inpatient physicians accepted less than half of their recommendations.

… of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists … Am J Health Syst Pharm … This article discusses using automated …

… Commission journal on quality and patient safety … Jt Comm J Qual Patient Saf … This study implemented new physician …

This study demonstrates opportunities for improving communication between inpatient provider teams and primary care providers but does not find a relationship between these communications and patient outcomes.

This systematic review evaluated 36 studies that encompassed pharmacy participation in patient rounds and medication reconciliation efforts as well as drug-specific pharmacist services. The authors detail the individual and collective findings, which include reductions in adverse drug events or errors in more than half the trials with improvements in medication adherence, knowledge, and appropriateness in a similar proportion. None of the studies demonstrated a worse overall outcome, and only one suggested increased health care utilization. The authors outline the needs for future investigation around roles for clinical pharmacists, clinical areas and patients most likely to benefit from their services, and better models to determine cost effectiveness.