Clinical Research Directory

Prescribing Outcomes of a GP-Targeted Deprescribing Educational Intervention: A Cluster Randomized Trial

Polypharmacy is a common and growing public health concern across healthcare settings worldwide and is associated with an increased risk of inappropriate prescribing and adverse drug events. Deprescribing-defined as the supervised withdrawal of potentially inappropriate medications using structured tools and clinical judgment-has been proposed as a strategy to improve prescribing safety. In Greece, formal initiatives and evidence evaluating deprescribing interventions in primary care remain limited. This study is a cluster randomized controlled trial evaluating the effect of an educational intervention for general practitioners (GPs) on prescribing safety in primary care. Participating GPs are randomized in an approximately 1:1 ratio to an intervention or control arm. GPs in the intervention arm receive structured education and training on medication review and deprescribing, including the use of validated deprescribing tools such as the Beers Criteria. GPs in the control arm provide usual care and do not receive any educational intervention. Patients receiving care from participating GPs are recruited, and prescribing outcomes are assessed at the patient level. The primary outcome is change in prescription medications following the intervention, comparing patients cared for by GPs in the intervention arm versus those cared for by GPs in the control arm.

Older Adults' Attitudes Towards Stopping Aspirin

This online, survey-based experiment will include 2,400 adults who are 65 years and older (n=1,200 each from the United States and Australia). Each participant will be asked to share their opinions on a hypothetical patient scenario developed by our multidisciplinary team. This work is expected to significantly contribute to the understanding of how older adults make decisions about deprescribing medications. The long-term goal is to enhance communication between older adults and clinicians so that medication regimens are optimized and align with care preferences. These results will directly inform future research on the impact of communication choices in clinical practice.