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Table 3 Factors important to GPs (n = 157) when deprescribing (per GP more than one answer was possible)

From: How general practitioners would deprescribe in frail oldest-old with polypharmacy — the LESS study

Factors

Rated as very important or important, %

Risk of a medication

99%

Benefit of a medication

98%

Quality of life of the patient

98%

Life expectancy of the patient

96%

Potential negative health outcomes of medication’s change

76%

Interprofessional communication

(between GPs and other prescribing physicians)

73%

Interprofessional collaboration

(between GPs and other prescribing physicians)

72%

Age of the patient

73%

Existence of deprescribing guidelines

64%

Expectations of the patient

63%

Difficult communication (between GP and patient, e.g. due to cognitive impairment)

56%

Expectation of relatives

49%

Existence of tools that facilitate deprescribing

48%

Expenditure of time for thinking about and deprescribing in the older multimorbid patient with polypharmacy

19%

Self-dispensation of medication in GP office1

7%

  1. 1Self-dispensation means ‘drug delivery by general practitioners in their office’