Effectiveness of a multidisciplinary home-based medication review program in reducing healthcare utilization among older adult Singaporeans.

Aim: The study aimed to: (i) evaluate the effectiveness of a multidisciplinary home-based medication review (HBMR) program in reducing hospital admissions and emergency department (ED) visits, cost of hospital admissions and length of stay (LOS); and (ii) determine the prevalence of drug-related problems (DRP) in elderly Singaporeans.

Methods: A retrospective observational study was carried out at an academic medical center in Singapore. Patients referred between 1 March 2011 and 31 December 2012 were included. Frequency of hospital admissions and ED visits, cost of hospital admissions, and LOS 6 months before and after HBMR, number of DRP, their categories, and their outcomes (i.e. resolved/ unresolved) were recorded.

Results: The analysis included 107 patients with a mean (SD) age of 75.6 years (7.6 years). HBMR resulted in a 41% reduction in risk for hospital admissions (Incidence rate ratio 0.59, 95% CI 0.47-0.73, P < 0.001). The same magnitude of reduction was observed for ED visits. The mean (SD) cost of hospital admissions reduced from $16 957.77 ($16 118.35) before HBMR to $7488.76 ($12 773.40) after (P < 0.001). Among 62 patients with hospital admissions before and after HBMR, the mean (SD) LOS decreased from 26.5 days (22.4 days) to 17.6 days (17.8 days; P = 0.010). The team identified 525 DRP from 1353 medications reviewed. Of these, 34 (6.7%) and 174 (34.1%) were resolved with and without physician involvement, respectively. The most common DRP identified were failure to receive drug (n = 163, 31.0%) and untreated indication (n = 140, 26.7%).

Conclusions: The multidisciplinary HBMR program was associated with reduced ED visits, hospital admissions, LOS and costs in older adult Singaporeans with multiple DRP. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2017; 17: 302-307.