Evaluation of prescription potentially inappropriate medications in elderly Hospitalized in teaching hospitals of Ilam city in 2020

Prescribing medication for the elderly is an important health issue and improper prescribing of medication is associated with side effects and requires more care. The aim of this study was to determine the amount of potentially inappropriate drugs prescribed to the elderly admitted to teaching hospitals in Ilam.

The present descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in 2020 on the ward of patients admitted to teaching hospitals in Ilam city, which was selected by regular (systematic) random sampling. Patients aged 60 years and older with complete medical records were included in the study, The beers2019 criterion was used to evaluate the prescribing of potentially inappropriate drugs. In order to analyze the data of SPSS software version 22 and descriptive and inferential statistics were used.

mean age of 71/29 ± 8/45. The rate of prescribing potentially inappropriate medications in the study population was 40. 7%. Pain Medication (26. 7%) are the most common potentially inappropriate medications groups. Aspirin (11. 1%) and ketorolac (10. 8%) are the most common potentially inappropriate medications. There was a statistically significant relationship between the type of elderly insurance and the prescription of potentially inappropriate drugs.
Discussion and

The rate of prescribing potentially inappropriate medications in the study population was 40. 7%. Potentially inappropriate medications are more common in older women than men. Our findings showed the necessity of developing scientific guidelines for drug use, promoting the criteria for drug prescription and enhancing physicians' knowledge, which can result in careful monitoring of the drug regimens of the elderly. Moreover, supervisions by Ministry of Health and Medical Council of Iran can play an important role in improving the current situation. The work history of physicians and their relationship with prescribing potentially inappropriate drugs was not investigated due to lack of accurate, complete and comprehensive information.