Medications in Post-Acute and Long-Term Care: Challenges and Controversies

Pharmaceutical agents are a valuable resource to assist in the care of older persons. Their use in post-acute and long-term care settings is particularly notable—for example, the proportion of nursing home residents taking 9 or more medications increased from 18% in the mid-1990s to 40% less than 15 years later.1,2 Average drug counts are similarly high around the world, although there is considerable variation in use between settings and countries.3,4 High medication use occurs despite the fact that persons with advanced age and multimorbidity are particularly susceptible to drug adverse effects due to physiological changes such as declines in hepatic and renal clearance.