ArticleJournal of the American Pharmacists Association : JAPhA
Design, implementation, and evaluation of a pharmacist-led outpatient benzodiazepine-tapering clinic.
Article in Journal of the American Pharmacists Association : JAPhA. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Evaluating the impact of pharmacists in outpatient mental health settings: a systematic review.International journal of clinical pharmacy · 2026Pooled it
- A Pharmacist Consultant Service for Deprescribing Opioids and Benzodiazepines in Older Adults: A Cluster Randomized Trial.JAMA network open · 2026Article
- Development of a Brief Mindfulness-Informed Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy Intervention to Pair With Pharmacist-Led Benzodiazepine Tapering for Older Adults: The CSTARS Intervention.Basic & clinical pharmacology & toxicology · 2025Article
- Insights Into Pharmacist-Led Deprescribing of Benzodiazepines and Related Drugs: A Qualitative Study With Physicians and Pharmacists.Basic & clinical pharmacology & toxicology · 2025Article
- Operation Polypharmacy: a pharmacist-led ambulatory care clinic design and evaluation for older patients.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Evaluation of a benzodiazepine deprescribing quality improvement initiative for older adults in primary care.Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · 2024Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundBenzodiazepines are commonly used among older adults, despite well-known risks. Clinical pharmacists can lead tapering efforts, leveraging their clinical expertise and relieving time-pressured primary care providers.
objectivesThe objective of this study is to describe the design, implementation, and evaluation of an outpatient pharmacist-led benzodiazepine-tapering clinic. PRACTICE DESCRIPTION: The clinic is based within a community medical group associated with a large academic health system in Los Angeles, California. PRACTICE INNOVATION: The clinic is staffed by clinical pharmacists and supervised by a psychiatrist. The initial visit consists of patient education, design of patient-driven tapering schedule, and medical history review. Follow-up phone/video visits are used to monitor withdrawal symptoms and provide support. EVALUATION
methodsWe used chart review to assess tapering status among those enrolled in the tapering clinic versus those who did not enroll. We compared outcomes across the 2 groups using bivariate statistics.
resultsFrom March 2017 to May 2019, 176 patients were referred to the clinic; 17 were deemed ineligible. Of the 159 patients contacted, 62 patients enrolled in the clinic; 97 patients did not enroll. Among patients in the clinic, 13 (27%) of patients were tapered down, 29 (60%) completely tapered off, 6 (13%) were unable to taper, and 14 (23%) were in the process of tapering. In contrast, among patients who did not enroll, 3 (4%) of patients were tapered down, 15 (20%) completely tapered off, 57 (76%) were unable to taper, and 22 (22%) were in the process of tapering. Ninety percent of patients had at least some benzodiazepine tapering when enrolled in the clinic compared to 41% among not enrolled in the clinic (P<0.001).
conclusionA pharmacist-led benzodiazepine-tapering clinic can be an effective way to engage patients motivated to taper down. Lessons learned include the importance of ensuring referring providers adequately counsel patients prior to referral.
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