Deprescribing in medication management.
Posted 03/12/25
Improve outcomes through safe deprescribing practices
Deprescribing is the supervised dose reduction or discontinuation of medications that may no longer provide a benefit to a patient or may cause harm, and is an important tool in good prescribing practices. As more medications are added to a patient’s treatment regimen, it can lead to an increased risk for medication-related problems (including risks for falls, side effects, and hospitalizations).
When appropriate, optimizing a medication regimen through deprescribing potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs) can have multiple benefits for a patient, including: decreasing medication burden/complications and side effect risks, improving quality of life, and lowering patient drug costs.
Examples in medication regimens which may be appropriate for deprescribing include:
- Long term use of PPIs
- Beers List medications in patients over 65 years of age
- Medications with no indication
- Duplicative therapies
- Medications with unlikely benefit
- Medications with drug or disease interactions
Our goal at Martin’s Point is to support the best care for our members and patients. As part of our medication safety initiatives, we continually review ways to impact adverse drug reactions and treatment failures. Periodically throughout the year, you may receive alerts if your patient is taking a potentially inappropriate medication which may be a candidate for deprescribing.
Recommended resources for providers:
Additional deprescribing tools:
