Cognitively impaired older adults living in residential aged care facilities (RACF) are at risk of adverse drug events related to potentially inappropriate polypharmacy. Based on telehealth visits with 720 RACF residents, 66% were receiving polypharmacy, with cognitively intact residents receiving significantly more medications than cognitively impaired residents. Overall, 82% of residents were receiving anti-cholinergic medications which should be avoided in this population. Future interventions and research should pay particular attention to the prescribing of these medications.

Naloxone administration is used to mitigate the effects of opioid overdose. The FDA recommends health care professionals educate patients about naloxone when prescribing opioid medications. In this audit of community pharmacists, researchers found that naloxone counseling commonly often excluded concepts important to patient safety, such as assessment of opioid misuse or abuse, possible adverse effects, and naloxone storage.

This systematic review explored how artificial intelligence (AI) based on machine learning algorithms and natural language processing is used to address and report patient safety outcomes. The review suggests that AI-enabled decision support systems can improve error detection, patient stratification, and drug management, but that additional evidence is needed to understand how well AI can predict safety outcomes.  

Polypharmacy is one risk factor for medication errors in older adults. This study describes the implementation of a pharmacist-administered deprescribing program in a long-term care facility in Canada. Over a one-year period, residents were randomized to receive either a deprescribing-focused medication review by a pharmacist or usual care. The intervention resulted in fewer medications taken by residents the intervention group after 6 months. Most deprescribing recommendations reflected a lack of ongoing indication or a dosage that was too high.

This pilot study evaluated the impact of transitional care pharmacist medication-related interventions in skilled nursing settings on 30-day hospital readmissions. The intervention group received transitional services involving a pharmacist (such as medication reconciliation, coordination with the skill nursing case manager and physician, and patient/caregiver education) and the control group received transitional services without pharmacist involvement. Over the follow-up period, median time to readmission was significantly longer in the intervention group but 30-day readmission rates were non-statistically significantly lower in the intervention compared to control group.

This study evaluated cross-sectional survey data from pharmacists and patients to characterize organizational factors associated with variation in safety climate, patient satisfaction and self-reported medication adherence in community pharmacies in the United Kingdom. Safety climate was associated with pharmacy ownership, organizational culture, working hours, and employment of accuracy checkers. Skill mix and continuity of care also influenced safety culture and quality.

Medication errors are common in inpatient and ambulatory environments. This commentary summarizes the research exploring the current status of medication safety incident reporting and reduction efforts in community pharmacies. The authors call for community pharmacy corporations to encourage the discussion and data sharing needed to increase transparency around incidents in this care setting. A recent PSNet interview discussed challenges to safety in the retail pharmacy environment.