Medication review target likely to be missed
Older people are not being reviewed |
The Government target for all over 75s to have an annual medicines review is probably not being met, according to the first report
on the state of the NHS published last week by the Healthcare Commission, because there is no mechanism to monitor the reviews.
The annual review recommended in the National Service Framework for Older
People was meant to be achieved by April 2002 with a review every six
months for those over the age of 75 who were on four or more medicines.
But according to the report, “State of healthcare 2004”,
published last week there is no system in place to establish whether
the target is being met nationally.
Figures which are available for medication reviews for the over 65s suggest
that only 50 per cent of this group of patients are having an annual
review.
The report also pointed out that a survey of medication reviews for the
over 75s, originally planned by the Department of Health for 2003, has
been postponed for a year.
Launching the report, commission chairman Sir Ian Kennedy said that some
parts of the NHS were performing better than others but the pace of improvement
was not enough for the people who needed help the most. He said: “My
concern, and that of the Healthcare Commission, is that those most in
need may still be getting the worst deal.” |
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