Category(s):
Health
Status: Active
Principal: Dan Dutton
Project Number: P0088
Year Approved: 2022
Ischemic heart disease is a major burden on the population of New Brunswick (NB), exhibited by the highest per capita incidence of myocardial infarction (MI) in Canada. Individuals who survive an MI are susceptible to death and reinfarction. To reduce these risks, consensus guideline statements have been published advocating for pharmacotherapy among virtually all elderly MI survivors. Investigators have shown that large increases in the use of cardiac medications among senior survivors of MI occurred during the 1990s, but underuse of therapies persists among a large proportion of eligible candidate. A substantial number of rehospitalizations and deaths mayhave been prevented if there was greater adherence to the published recommendations.
The literature on medication dispensations following hospital discharge for MI has not been updated in Canada since 2006 and estimates using administrative drug claim databases of the proportion of MI survivors dispensed these medications have never been reported in Atlantic Canada. The aim of this research is to characterize the dispensation of recommended drugs from community pharmacies to seniors following discharge from hospital for MI in NB over time between 2008 and 2017 and to determine if patient, physician and hospital characteristics are associated with medication dispensation. Data from linked administrative health databases will be used to conduct a retrospective cohort study on community dwelling seniors (65 years and older) who have been discharged from hospital for MI and have been covered by the New Brunswick Prescription Drug Program for at least one year.
