An interventional study of Usual AF and Facilitated AF in Inappropriate Prescribing, Implementation Science and Behavioral Sciences, sponsored by Basque Health Service. Not yet recruiting at 1 site in Spain. Open to participants aged 65 Years and older, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-05-13.
Sponsored by Basque Health Service · Not applicable, Interventional, and Health services research
The objective is to estimate the effect attributable to a primary care pharmacist-led audit and feedback (AF) strategy compared to the currently used AF strategy as a management tool to evaluate healthcare performance focusing on processes and outcomes, for reducing the rate of patients over 65 years of age with potentially inappropriate prescribing (PIP) of benzodiazepines, proton pump inhibitors and opioids.
A closed-cohort stepped-wedge cluster-randomised trial will be conducted in nine PC centres from Barakaldo-Sestao Integrated Health Organization, Basque Health Service (Osakidetza). All health centre clusters will start under the control condition, and after an initial study period of 4 months in the control phase, one centre per step at 1-month intervals will be randomly assigned to crossover to the intervention, under which they will be exposed to an additional component of AF, namely, primary care pharmacist-led facilitation.
Mixed-methods analysis will be performed, gathering quantitative data to assess the results of the implementations at health centre and clinician levels, and qualitative data to assess the feasibility and perceived impact of the de-implementation strategies from the clinicians' perspective, and explore the experience and satisfaction of patients regarding the healthcare received.
This study will provide useful knowledge on the effect attributable to a more intensive AF strategy (facilitated AF) compared to standard procedures of AF reports, and of the characteristics of AF that are most effective.
PRIMARY CARE CENTERS IN THE BARAKALDO-SESTAO INTEGRATED HEALTHCARE ORGANISATION OF OSAKIDETZA-BASQUE HEALTH SERVICE:
Inclusion Criteria:
Exclusion Criteria:
PATIENTS ASSIGNED TO THE PARTICIPATING PC CENTERS:
Inclusion Criteria:
Exclusion Criteria:
All health centre clusters will start under the control condition
Behavioral: Usual AF
one centre per step at 1-month intervals will be randomly assigned to crossover to the intervention
Behavioral: Usual AF · Behavioral: Facilitated AF
The strategy currently used as a management tool to evaluate healthcare performance focusing on processes and outcomes, as part of Osakidetza's operating contract: provision of AF, sent to PC centres every 4 months with data on overall rates of PIP, lists of patients over 65 years old who have a potentially inappropriate prescription of at least one of the drugs of interest, and provision of support materials related to appropriate prescribing and recommendations on deprescribing.
Based on a facilitation component delivered by PC pharmacy staff. Specifically, the PC pharmacists will conduct a facilitation session with the centre's clinicians in which they will review the magnitude of PIP in the centre (PIP rates), appropriateness/inappropriateness criteria, and guidelines to encourage deprescribing, and draw up an action plan at clinician and centre levels.
Primary effectiveness: Proportion of patients with deprescribing or tapering of any of the PIP
proportion of patients for whom appropriateness is achieved, either through deprescribing or tapering (for example, dose reduction) of any of the drugs potentially inappropriately prescribed in the patients included in the clusters.
Time frame: From baseline to 13 months
Secondary effectiveness: Proportion of patients with deprescribing or tapering for each PIP
proportion of patients in whom appropriateness is achieved for each of the potentially inappropriately prescribed drugs assessed separately
Time frame: From baseline to 13 months
Secondary Effectiveness: Rate of new PIP
Rate of new PIP among patients over 65 years old seeking medical care during the study period
Time frame: From baseline to 13 months
Adoption: Percentage of General Practitioners who agree to receive the active components of the strategies
Percentage of doctors, out of the total number invited to participate at the start of the intervention, who agree to receive the active components of the strategies, as well as the characteristics of those who do and do not agree to participate.
Time frame: From baseline to 13 months
Degree of implementation fidelity
The degree of fidelity with which each strategy has been implemented compared to what was originally planned will be evaluated. For this, the implementation process and any adaptations made to the strategies or their active components will be recorded and subsequently described. Furthermore, we will evaluate the degree of exposure of GPs to the strategies.
Time frame: From baseline to 13 months
General Practitioners´ perception of the feasibility and acceptability
GPs perception of the feasibility and acceptability of the deprescribing strategy based on the AF to adapt/reduce their practice of unnecessary pharmacological prescribing.
Time frame: From baseline to 19 months
Plan to share: Yes — Individual participant data that support future results will be shared, after deidentification
Supporting information: Study protocol
No publications or documents are linked to this record.
This study is not yet recruiting, as verified in May 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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Basque Health Service