ArticleAge and ageing2025
Understanding polypharmacy for people receiving home care services: a scoping review of the evidence.
Article in Age and ageing, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- 'We're the Eyes and Ears… out There': A Qualitative Exploration of the Perceptions and Experiences of Polypharmacy Amongst Home Care Providers.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2026Article
- Prevalence and associated factors for drug-related problems and polypharmacy identified by a pharmacist-led medication review in patients enrolled in a home healthcare program.BMC geriatrics · 2026Observational
- Experiences of Older People Living at Home With Medication Use: A Qualitative Study From Lithuania.Cureus · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundPolypharmacy, defined as the concurrent use of five or more medications, is common amongst older adults receiving home care services. The relationship between home care and polypharmacy may be critical to older people's health, but there is little research on this topic.
objectiveTo understand the extent and type of evidence on individuals receiving home care services and experiencing polypharmacy.
methodsThis review followed the Preferred Reporting of Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for scoping reviews. Three databases (MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL) were systematically searched (December 2023) to identify studies with adult participants experiencing polypharmacy and receiving home care.
resultsTwenty-three studies were included. For individuals receiving home care services, the studies reported on the following: (i) prevalence of polypharmacy, (ii) interventions to reduce inappropriate polypharmacy, (iii) perceived role of home care workers, (iv) assessment of health literacy in individuals experiencing polypharmacy, and (v) factors associated with polypharmacy and potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs). Polypharmacy and PIMs were found to be associated with older age, female sex, increased frailty, living alone, poor economic situation and inaccuracies within medical records. Improved appropriateness of prescribing can be achieved through interprofessional interventions, efficient use of home care workers and improved health literacy.
conclusionThis review highlights research on the extent of polypharmacy in home care and ways to address it. Whilst there are suggestions for enhancing medication quality, key gaps remain in research into the experiences of care staff and recipients in managing medications and polypharmacy, which should be addressed.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.