title: Medication management at home: medication-related risk factors associated with poor health outcomes.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Some patients may have medication-related risk factors only identified by home visits, but the extent to which those risk factors are associated with poor health outcomes remains unclear.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To determine the association between medication-related risk factors and poor patient health outcomes from observations in the patients' homes.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients' homes.
  
  
  METHODS
  204 general practice patients living in their own homes and at risk of medication-related poor health outcomes.
  
  
  METHODS
  Medications and medication-related risk factors were identified in the patients' homes by community pharmacists and general practitioners (GPs). The medication-related risk factors were examined as determinants of patients' self-reported health related quality of life (SF-36) and their medication use, as well as physicians' impression of patient adverse drug events and health status.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Key medication-related risk factors associated with poor health outcomes included: Lack of any medication administration routine, therapeutic duplication, hoarding, confusion between generic and trade names, multiple prescribers, discontinued medication repeats retained and multiple storage locations. Older age and female gender were associated with some poorer health outcomes. In addition, expired medication and poor adherence were also associated with poor health outcomes, however, not independently.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings support the theory that polypharmacy and medication-related risk factors as a result of polypharmacy are correlated to poor health outcomes.
authors.affiliation: Therapeutics Research Unit, Department of Medicine, University of Queensland, Queensland, Australia. LES@pharmakon.dk
authors.forename: Lene
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sorensen
authors.forename: Julie A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Stokes
authors.forename: David M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Purdie
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Woodward
authors.forename: Michael S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Roberts
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006699:Home Care Services; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008508:Medication Errors / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D010361:Patients; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D012307:Risk Factors; D012646:Self Administration