As many as 1,000 elderly patients a day are admitted to hospital for emergency care after suffering a preventable reaction to a drug they are taking, according to analysis of NHS data reported by The Sunday Times.
The investigation found that doctors are prescribing dangerous levels of medication to elderly patients, causing reactions including low blood pressure, dizziness and irregular heartbeats. The consumption of cocktails of medicines is also leading to falls.
Millions at risk from multiple medications
It has been found that eight million people in the UK are at risk of medical side effects as a result of being prescribed five or more drugs to take daily. A study published earlier this year revealed that around 2.2 million Brits take 10 drugs a day.
Polypharmacy is a term used to define the concurrent use of five medications by a single individual. At this point, the risk of side effects increases, making it especially dangerous for frail patients and those living with mobility issues.
Systemic failures and coroner warnings
Coroners have warned about the dangers of polypharmacy contributing to deaths, The Sunday Times reports. Studies note systemic failures in the NHS as the cause of the over-prescription epidemic.
Time constraints and appointment shortages, combined with fragmented care across hospitals, homes and GPs, can sometimes lead to a pile-up of medications, with the side-effects of one being misdiagnosed as a new condition. Medications properly prescribed in the past can later become dangerous as a patient ages.
Clinicians call for de-prescribing training
Jugdeep Dhesi, president of the British Geriatrics Society and a consultant geriatrician at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust in London, said: “The more tablets that you take, the more likely there are interactions, and this can happen more the older you are.”
She added: “We have got these statistics and evidence coming at us, and we’re all really worried about it, but the system just keeps on looking down and thinking if we just carry on doing the same thing, it’ll be okay. It won’t.”
The crisis of over-prescribing costs the NHS an estimated £2.21 billion a year, according to figures published by the University of Southampton.
Leading clinicians are now calling for doctors to receive improved training in de-prescribing or stopping drugs, specialist geriatricians, and medication reviews for elderly patients. A new national plan for the care of the frail elderly is due to be published in January, setting modern standards for the care of the elderly, including medication prescribing.
An NHS spokesperson said: “We know we need to do more to meet the needs of our ageing population better and that’s why we have made it clear to NHS organisations what the best interventions are to provide effective community support for frail people through new guidance, such as ensuring their care plans involve regular medication reviews so that only medicines that are clinically appropriate are prescribed.”
Doctors have urged that no one should stop taking meds without first speaking to their GP or specialist doctor, adding that drugs prescribed to elderly people will be vital.
