The Role of Pharmacists in Optimising Drug Therapy

In this chapter, we aim to present and discuss the activities performed by pharmacists at individual patient level for optimising drug therapy and the role of pharmacists in training other healthcare professionals (HCPs) towards medicines optimisation in older people. Then, we describe the different models of care and their levels of implementation in the ambulatory, acute and long-term care settings. The case of pharmacist prescribing is also addressed. There has been a strong evolution over the last decades in the role played by pharmacists in optimising drug therapy for older people, either as individual HCPs or as part of multidisciplinary teams. This role now goes far beyond medication supply and checking drug interactions, for example. In parallel, educational programs to train pharmacists in patient-centred care and geriatric pharmacotherapy have been developed, and pharmacists are now better equipped to take on their expanding roles as part of multidisciplinary teams.