Polypharmacy: Guidance for Prescribing in Frail Adults

All Wales Medicines Strategy Group. Polypharmacy: Guidance for Prescribing in Frail Adults.July 2014. Available at: http://www.awmsg.org/docs/awmsg/medman/Polypharmacy%20-%20Guidance%20for%20Prescribing%20in%20Frail%20Adults.pdf

However, up to 50% of medicines are not taken as prescribed. Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) count for 6.5% of hospital admissions and over 70% of ADRs are avoidable.
The proportion of patients receiving 10 or more medicines has increased from 1.9% in 1995 to 5.8% in 2010, and the average number of items per person increased by 53.8% between 2001 and 2011.