Effectiveness of a clinical decision-support tool on adherence to prescribing and practice guidelines of high-risk antidepressant medications in geriatric patients

INTRODUCTION: TCAs and paroxetine, a SSRI, are associated with safety risks in geriatric patients because of anticholinergic properties. The purpose of this project was to evaluate the impact of a clinical decision-support tool (CDST) on adherence with medication prescribing and practice guidance to enhance patient safety. METHODS: Mental health clinical pharmacy specialists and clinical pharmacy leadership led a multidisciplinary creation and integration of a CDST within a Veterans Health Administration EHR. The CDST focused on the following elements when prescribing TCAs and paroxetine in geriatric patients: clinical justification for initiation of the medication, provision of patient/caregiver education specific to the medication prescribed, evaluation of comprehension of education provided, medication reconciliation, and follow-up completed within 30 days of medication initiation. Following activation of the CDST in the EHR, measures were evaluated before intervention and after intervention. RESULTS: After intervention, an increase was observed in the primary outcome of the proportion of patients having documentation of all of the following: clinical justification for medication initiation, provision of patient/caregiver education, evaluation of comprehension of education provided, medication reconciliation, and follow-up completed within 30 days of medication initiation (P = .01). Individual proportions of patients with documented medication reconciliation and follow-up completed within 30 days significantly increased. All other secondary outcomes numerically increased but did not reach statistical significance. DISCUSSION: Improvement was seen in adherence with prescribing and practice guidance following the implementation of the CDST. This suggests the beneficial role of CDSTs within the EHR to optimize patient safety.