Stephen Erhorn, Author at RDTC

Prescribing for Population Health – Polypharmacy and Overprescribing: Opioids

February 17, 2023

In recent years, there has been increasing concern regarding the overprescribing of opioids and associated harms. The RDTC has produced a series of publications as part of the Polypharmacy and Overprescribing theme reviewing opioid prescribing:

Each publication includes considerations and interventions for medicines optimisation teams and health systems. To avoid duplication across this series of overprescribing and polypharmacy opioid publications, the suggested actions have only been listed in the most relevant theme but may apply across all. We recommend reading all parts of the series sequentially to ensure the breadth of potential actions are known. The publications can be accessed using the links below:

PPH 3. Polypharmacy & Overprescribing: Opioid patient populations:

This publication aims to support greater understanding of the patient populations prescribed opioids and the inter-relationships and dependencies between prescribing and the available metrics.

PPH 4. Polypharmacy & Overprescribing: Opioid patient demographics:

This publication aims to support greater understanding of the demographics of the patient populations prescribed opioids.

PPH 5. Opioid population health management:

This publication aims to support greater understanding of the population health management of patients prescribed opioids, specifically in terms of deprivation level and the impact on sustainability and climate change.

Comparison table: DOACs for Atrial Fibrillation

August 10, 2022

This a new RDTC publication to aid clinical decision making when choosing the most appropriate DOAC for an individual patient with atrial fibrillation.

It has been prepared in response to the NHSE England National Procurement and Commissioning Recommendations published in January 2022.

This publication was updated in August 2022 to update guidance on use of DOACs in patients with AF with prosthetic heart valves. Further information was also added about use in extremes of bodyweight.

May 2022 Newsletter

June 1, 2022

Prescribing support newsletters aim to inform readers of work done by the unit and work in progress, to help tailor local work plans and highlight any ‘topical’ issues in prescribing or medicines management.

If you have any suggestions for future topics for the newsletter, then please contact nuth.nyrdtc.rxsupp@nhs.net

This month’s edition covers how the RDTC can support stakeholder organisations, our recent publications, and the prescribing support workplan. It also has features on post exposure prophylaxis for chickenpox and shingles, the national flu immunisation programme 2022-23, inadvertent oral administration of potassium permanganate, the CVD eLearning programme, WHO changes to the treatment of drug-resistant tuberculosis, and sources of information on menopause and HRT availability.

Download the May 2022 newsletter here

Annual Horizon Scanning Report – 2022-2023

February 16, 2022

Each year the RDTC considers the information published in the SPS Prescribing Outlook series, and from this information highlights developments that are likely to have significant impact on primary care prescribing budgets, over the coming 12 – 15 months.

The RDTC takes the SPS Cost Calculator and aids in filters to calculate totals for each of its stakeholder ICS and CCGs.

A Key Considerations Document accompanies the Cost Calculator detailing the key messages, summarising the current prescribing budget position, and suggesting proposed uplifts to prescribing budgets for the next financial year.

This is supplemented throughout the year with the RDTC Monthly Horizon Scanning series, which provides a more accurate monthly account of the impact of new medicines and recommendations as they publish.

There are five regional versions of this publication. These can all be found on the Annual Horizon Scanning Report page