gms | German Medical Science

Demographic ageing and working as 1. general practioner, 2. pharmacist or 3. nursery means being involved in management of polypharmacy in geriatric patients. Within this vulnerable patient group drug safety requires more educated and interprofessional engagement of all health professionals.

To obtain intense and precise cooperation, communication and networking with regard to polypharmacy SAPREMO was designed addressing all three health professions equally. Operating as a team is the fundamental idea of this interprofessional project involving the three groups treating the same patient at different yet confluencing stages. The innovative aspect is to identify new symptoms that might result from drug effects or side effects and adapt as early as possible. Interprofessional round table educating workshops as well as interprofessional educative lectures are implemented throughout the German federal state Saxony Anhalt as the project´s baseline. SAPREMO aims to leave the most critically universalized step up treatment with further drug therapy to cope with drug induced new symptoms as observed by the author´s more than 8680 detailed medication reviews of geriatric patients in traumatology, intensive care units as well as nursing homes. In consequence the worldwide public health‘s challenge esp. concerning manifestation of cognitive dysfunction and falls and fractures in the elderly people imperatively requires prevention instead of the overall and most expensive attempt to iron out manifestations of undetected because disregarded drug related problems.

Cooperation partners are the Medical Council, Pharmacists‘ Chamber, General Practioners‘ Association and Association of Statutory Health Insurance Saxony Anhalt. The challenging project has started with great resonance striking a significant chord and is promoted by the Robert Bosch Foundation.