Healthcare professionals and organisations should share decisions about care with patients and share relevant patient information with each other, say new NICE guidelines on medicines optimisation. Charlotte Rixon reports

New guidance from NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) recommends that healthcare professionals give patients greater involvement in decisions about their care and share relevant information when patients move between care settings, in order to ensure that people get the best out of their medicines. Paul Chrisp, programme director, NICE Medicines Prescribing Centre, said: “The NICE guideline on medicines optimisation sets out what needs to be done by all health and social care practitioners and organisations to put in place the person-centred systems and processes required for the optimal use of medicines.”

Improving adherence

Government statistics show that around 15 million people in England currently have a longterm condition – a figure that is likely to grow due to our ageing population – while increasing numbers of people are living with multiple conditions. Most patients with chronic conditions are prescribed medication.

However, research suggests that between 30 and 50 per cent of prescribed medicines are not taken as intended. To improve adherence levels, the NICE guideline states that all people should be offered the opportunity to be involved in decisions about their medicines. Healthcare professionals should find out to what extent individuals would like to be involved, rather than making assumptions.

Information sharing

The guidance urges health and social care practitioners to share relevant information when patients transfer between care settings, to reduce the risk of medicines errors. At present, between 30 and 70 per cent of patients experience an error or unintentional change to their medicines when they move from one setting to another, while eight per cent of unplanned hospital admissions are due to medication issues.

Liz Butterfield, medicines optimisation lead, Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) English Pharmacy Board, said: “We welcome this guideline that asks pharmacists, doctors and nurses to discuss and pay attention to people’s wishes about treatment.” She added that the guideline reflected the RPS principles of medicines optimisation, as well as emphasising the fact that “decisions about treatment must be shared between patients and healthcare professionals.”