Enhancing medication safety for patients during the transition from hospital to home

From the moment of hospital discharge, up to the first few weeks following discharge - known as the transition from hospital to home - patients are susceptible to harm caused by medications. Of all hospital readmissions, approximately 20% are caused by medications with a preventability of nearly 70%. The objectives of this thesis were to present research on how to enhance medication safety for patients during the transition from hospital to home.
This thesis provides evidence that longitudinal interventions are required to prevent medication-related harm. A systematic review and meta-analysis showed that medication-related interventions (e.g. medication reconciliation), performed both in the hospital and post-discharge, reduce all-cause hospital readmissions within 30 days of hospital discharge. Focus group studies with patients and healthcare providers from the hospital and primary healthcare revealed that barriers and facilitators, with medication use and management during the transition to home, occur on the patient-, healthcare provider-, and healthcare system level. Furthermore, evidence suggests that structured intra- and interdisciplinary collaboration is needed to identify and resolve post-discharge medication-related problems in older patients.
In conclusion, to enhance medication safety for patients during the transition from hospital to home, substantial and long-term effort from patients, informal caregivers, and healthcare providers is required. It is time for every involved stakeholder to accept their role in this multicomponent complex transition process; less attention should be given to whom carries out which intervention and more effort should be put into how healthcare providers can effectively collaborate, both intra-and interdisciplinary across healthcare settings.