Factors Determining the Rate of Adoption of Pharmaceutical Recommendations by Patients in Primary Care Following a Medication Review by a Pharmacist

NCT07606716 | Active Not Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: REVMEDADOPT 2025/03/NOV/450
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 123
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Polypharmacy is a growing public health concern associated with adverse drug events, drug interactions, and hospitalizations. Medication reviews (MedRev) are structured evaluations of patients' medications aiming to optimize treatment and improve outcomes. In Belgium, a reimbursed MedRev service involving community pharmacists and general practitioners (GPs) has been implemented since 2023. The RevMedAdopt Pharmacy Study is a national prospective interventional study evaluating the real-world implementation of pharmaceutical recommendations generated during medication reviews performed by supervised final-year pharmacy students. The primary objective is to assess the adoption rate of pharmaceutical recommendations at 3 and 6 months after the medication review. Recommendations are categorized as fully adopted, partially adopted, not adopted, or unavailable. Secondary objectives are to identify factors associated with recommendation implementation, including patient characteristics, pharmacist and GP collaboration, medication review processes, and recommendation-related factors. The study includes adult polymedicated patients living at home in Belgium and followed by both a GP and a reference pharmacist. Approximately 120 patients will be recruited. Medication reviews are conducted during pharmacy internships following the official Belgian MedRev framework. Recommendations validated by supervising pharmacists are communicated to GPs. Follow-up data are collected through telephone interviews with patients and GPs. Qualitative interviews with patients, pharmacists, and GPs explore barriers and facilitators influencing recommendation adoption. This mixed-methods study aims to improve understanding of the implementation of pharmacist-led medication review recommendations in primary care and to support optimization of interprofessional collaboration and medication review services.

Conditions

Polypharmacy (People Under Treatment With 5 or More Drugs); Polypharmacy, Decision-making; Medication Review

Keywords

polypharmacy; Medication Review; Medication Optimization; Drug-Related Problems; Pharmaceutical Care; Community Pharmacy; Pharmacist Interventions; Interprofessional Collaboration; General Practitioners; Implementation Science; Adoption of Recommendations; Primary Care; Medication Safety; Deprescribing

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Adoption rate of medication review recommendations

  Proportion of medication review recommendations (related to drug-related problems, DRPs) that are implemented by the GP and/or the patient following communication.

  3 and 6 months

Secondary Outcomes (5)

• Number and types of drug-related problems identified

  baseline

• Number and types of recommendations formulated

  Baseline

• Patient characteristics

  Baseline

• Intensity and mode of communication between pharmacist and GP

  From baseline to 6 months

• Communication pathway of recommendations

  From baseline to 6 months

Other Outcomes (2)

• Adoption rate according to recommendation type

  6 months

• Adoption rate according to communication pathway

  6 months

Study Arms (1)

RevMedAdopt intervention

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants receive a structured medication review conducted by last-year pharmacy students, including identification of drug-related problems and communication of recommendations to the treating general practitioner and/or patient.

Behavioral: medication review and deprescribing

Interventions

medication review and deprescribing BEHAVIORAL

The intervention consists of a structured medication review performed by trained healthcare students. This process includes the systematic identification of drug-related problems (DRPs), such as inappropriate medications, drug-drug interactions, dosing issues, therapeutic duplications, and adherence-related concerns. Based on this assessment, individualized recommendations are formulated to optimize pharmacotherapy. These interventions may include medication discontinuation (deprescribing), dose adjustment, initiation of appropriate therapies, or patient education. Recommendations are communicated to the GP and/or directly to the patient, depending on the nature of the intervention. The implementation and adoption of these recommendations are subsequently evaluated during follow-ups at 3 and 6 months

RevMedAdopt intervention

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Adult patients (≥18 years old) living at home
• French-speaking patients, or patients with a close caregiver able to communicate in French
• Patients with polypharmacy (defined as the use of five or more reimbursed chronic medications)
• Patients undergoing an official structured medication review performed by final-year UCLouvain pharmacy students
• Patients able to provide informed consent
• Patients with an identified referent general practitioner and referent pharmacist

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Université Catholique de Louvain: lead

Study Sites (1)

Campus Woluwé

Woluwe-Saint-Lambert, 1200, Belgium

Location

Related Publications (1)

• Foubert K, Mehuys E, Maesschalck J, De Wulf I, Wuyts J, Foulon V, Lelubre M, De Vriese C, Somers A, Petrovic M, Boussery K. Pharmacist-led medication review in community-dwelling older patients using the GheOP3 S-tool: General practitioners' acceptance and implementation of pharmacists' recommendations. J Eval Clin Pract. 2020 Jun;26(3):962-972. doi: 10.1111/jep.13241. Epub 2019 Jul 22.

  PMID: 31332905 BACKGROUND

Related Links

• Description of the official new fee dedicated to medication reviews made by community pharmacists in Belgium.

MeSH Terms

Interventions

Medication Review; Deprescriptions

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Medication Systems; Organization and Administration; Health Services Administration; Patient Care Management; Drug Therapy; Therapeutics

Study Officials

• Olivia Dalleur, PhD, Professor

  Université Catholique de Louvain

  STUDY DIRECTOR

• Manon de Montigny

  Université Catholique de Louvain

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: May 19, 2026
• First Posted: May 26, 2026
• Study Start: January 12, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2027
• Last Updated: June 1, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-05

Locations

BE (1)