A prospective cohort study of the effect of deprescribing on mortality and readmission in a population of elderly inpatients discharged to a nursing home.

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Modern medical care can provide many medications for problems, whether simply short-term medications like antibiotics or longer-term medications like those used to treat high blood pressure. But we do not know enough about ceasing medications, especially in elderly patients. We know that often medications are ceased while a patient is hospitalised; sometimes medications are not ceased. We want to collect data about those patients who had medications stopped and those who did not, and compare the two groups later to look for any differences. Many elderly people complain about being on too many medications. People on lots of medications might wonder what would happen if one or more of their regular medications was ceased. Our purpose is to understand better any benefits for older people to be on fewer regular medications and any unforeseen risks of stopping regular medications in older people. Hospital doctors often cease a regular medication. We will not influence when and how that happens for your loved one, only observe whether or not it does happen, and call you after discharge to find out how he or she is feeling. What does participation in this research involve? Nothing about their hospital care will be different. The patient will be treated just like any other patient. Sometimes a patient is hospitalised as a result of a side effect of a medication which is then stopped. Sometimes a patient is admitted to hospital for a different reason but a medicine needs to be stopped in hospital. And sometimes no medications need to be stopped. These measures are all part of routine hospital care. We simply want to check on your loved one after his or her hospital stay to see how he or she is feeling. What are the possible benefits of taking part? After discharge, the patient will be given extra attention in the form of a follow-up phone call, either to you, the patient, or the patient’s General Practitioner. If, during this phone call, it becomes evident that the patient needs urgent or semi-urgent attention, the re-search assistant will immediately contact the Chief Investigator, who will then contact either the Residential Care Facility where the patient lives, the next of kin (or person responsible), or the General Practitioner to develop a plan to address the patient’s needs. What are the possible risks and disadvantages of taking part? The only burden to you might be a follow-up phone call. If, during this phone call, you seem anxious or distress because of the questions, the interview will be stopped.

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