Education in the basic specifics of rational geriatric pharmacotherapy

Due to the exponential aging of the population and the expected increase in the number of seniors in the Czech Republic and other countries to 30 % or more by 2050, there is a growing need to significantly increase the main knowledge, skills and competences in the field of safe setting of combined drug regimens in older age and in rational geriatric pharmacotherapy. This course focuses on participants´ modern knowledge and skills in the specifics of rational geriatric treatment and individualized geriatric pharmacotherapy. It increases the competence their competencies in the area of the first signal assessment of the safety and effectiveness of combined drug regimens in older age (the so-called „signal drug revision“).

The course deepens the knowledge of the participants especially in the areas of specific geriatric drug indications, the appropriateness of the choice of drugs within drug groups for seniors in various degrees of geriatric frailty, in specifics of geriatric dosing, geriatric dosing intervals, potentially inappropriate drugs/drug procedures in older age, explicit and implicit methods of the evaluation of quality of geriatric drug prescription, in the evaluation of drug-drug and drug-disease interactions and enables participants to practice basic knowledge in the form of interactive teaching materials (case studies and interactive tests). It contains 8 physical educational modules each with 3 professional lectures given by experts in geriatrics, gerontology, clinical pharmacy and rational geriatric pharmacotherapy. The professional contents of the lectures and interactive materials also include knowledge regarding pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic changes in older age and their impact on the changed effectiveness and safety of the most frequently indicated drug procedures, on the specifics of pharmacotherapy of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes mellitus in older age, on specific approaches in the treatment of dementia , depression, insomnia and pain, principles of adjusting drug dosages in different stages of renopathy in older adults, solving geriatric ion dysbalances, symptom management and specifics of palliative care for geriatric patients, as well as rational choice of various drug forms. Introductory and final lectures also include information regarding the aging of the global population, "ageism" (i.e. discrimination against older adults) in the field of effective and safe use of drugs, pharmacoeconomic issues of the need to reduce drug hospitalizations and individualization of drug regimens in older patients, and the importance of interdisciplinary cooperation in the effective, safe and cost-effective geriatric pharmacotherapy.

Through the presented knowledge and training of the first skills, the course enables "up-skilling" (increase in the knowledge, skills and competeces) of physicians, pharmacists and other healthcare professionals in modern approaches of individualized geriatric pharmacotherapy. Taking into a