NYC Health + Hospitals announced today that it has received a grant of $ 234,000 to evaluate alternatives to high-risk drugs in the elderly to prevent falls and delirium in patients.

Using a non-intrusive “nudge” intervention approach, certain drugs, most often sedatives, will be adjusted at lower doses and at lower frequency, in order to reduce the risk to patients.

This will be done to help modify and understand the prescribing behavior of physicians and improve safety outcomes for patients over 65, a group particularly vulnerable to confusion and falls after taking medications at high levels. risk.

The grants will be used to study and modify the system’s medical records system to support random selection of patients and automatic drug filling.

The results will be rigorously studied and this intervention will be carried out in each of the 11 hospitals in the public health system. The supporting grant is provided by The Doctors Company Foundation.

“Our public health system continues to challenge the status quo in medicine, finding new ways to encourage the safety of our patients and to deliver high quality care to everyone,” said Eric Wei, MD, senior vice president and quality manager of NYC Health + Hospitals. , MBA. “This grant from the Doctors Company Foundation will allow us to tackle another safety issue for our patients that could lead to greater efficiency and faster, healthier exits. “

“We aim to provide the right medications at the safest doses for our seniors, finding optimal ways to relieve symptoms and lessen damage. This grant will help us do what’s right for our patients, ”said Hyung (Harry) Cho, value director for NYC Health + Hospitals.

The ‘nudge’ intervention will be integrated into NYC Health + Hospitals’ electronic medical records system to help select patients at random. Prescriptions will automatically default to a lower dose or dosing frequency for this patient group. Examples of high-risk drugs can include sedatives, such as zolpidem (Ambien) and diphenhydramine (Benadryl). The research will be evaluated for a number of outcomes, including a reduction in hospital falls, injuries, unnecessary readmissions and length of stay.

Patients over 65 are the most likely to suffer from falls and delirium if they are given sleep medication, and higher risk medications may present additional dangers when combined with other medications on their own. arrangement.

Due to drug sensitivity, this group of patients may benefit from lower doses of less harmful drugs.

NYC Health + Hospitals is the nation’s largest publicly funded health care system, serving more than one million New Yorkers each year at more than 70 patient care centers in the city’s five boroughs.

A strong network of primary and specialized ambulatory care centers, based in the district, anchors the coordination of care with trauma centers, nursing homes, after-care centers, the home care agency and the MetroPlus system health plan, all supported by 11 essential hospitals.

Its diverse workforce of more than 42,000 employees is focused solely on empowering New Yorkers, bar none, to live the healthiest lives possible.

For more information, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org and stay connected on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NYCHealthandHospitals or on Twitter at @NYCHealthSystem.