Care Management Technologies provides analytics engine to Canadian study of reducing inappropriate prescriptions
Morrisville, NC, February 19, 2015 (Newswire.com) - Care Management Technologies (CMT), a U.S.-based company, is the analytics engine behind a recently released Canadian randomized control study evaluating the impact of a mailed educational intervention to reduce potentially inappropriate prescribing of sleeping pills and benzodiazepines. The program, IMPRᵪOVE (Improving Medication Prescribing and Outcomes Via Medical Education), is a mailed package that provides educational feedback to doctors when one or more of their behavioral health prescriptions might be ineffective.
CMT’s subsidiary, Comprehensive NeuroScience™ of Canada (CNSC), has been working in collaboration with the Provincial Department of Manitoba Health, Healthy Living and Seniors in Manitoba, Canada since 2009 to improve the quality of prescribing of psychotropic medicines for the Manitoban Provincial Health beneficiaries.
In a randomized study of the program conducted by the Manitoba Centre for Health Policy, it was found that doctors who received CMT’s educational packages swiftly and significantly reduced potentially inappropriate prescribing for sleeping pills and benzodiazepines, a type of sedative medication that includes Valium-like drugs. These drugs are often prescribed for off-label uses and have considerable health risks, so a reduction in their inappropriate use is good news for the health of Manitobans.
Jeff Onyskiw, Director of the Manitoba Drug Management Policy Unit, believes the program has a far greater impact for Manitoba than the statistically significant results for the control group: “To have completed a randomized control trial study of this magnitude, across an entire province of 1.1 million people is rare. The findings showed that a program such as Comprehensive NeuroScience™ of Canada (CNSC/CMT) has fast and sustainable impact in improving the quality of prescribing for psychotropic medications.”
In the U.S., approximately 15% of healthcare dollars are spent on drugs and medical devices. For common conditions like anxiety, depression and insomnia, medications can be very helpful, but they can also be harmful if not prescribed and used correctly.
“While these medications are valuable and helpful when used judiciously,” says Murray Enns, M.D., one of the study authors, “there can be significant hazards, particularly when patients receive multiple medications, high doses, or when advancing age increases the risks. These risks include accidents and confusion, especially among the elderly. Benzodiazepines are also potentially habit-forming, and a small group of patients may abuse them.”
The study has allowed CMT to see the magnitude of the program’s success and Carol Clayton, CMT President and CEO, believes it will shape future changes in the IMPRᵪOVE program and in CMT’s products and solutions in the U.S. “We have a tremendous working relationship with our colleagues in Manitoba Health,” Carol Clayton said. “This relationship resulted in this impressive and rigorously conducted study of an audit and feedback program designed to change prescribing behavior. Its use of random assignment and statistical analysis showed that CMT’s programs are effective in improving the quality of prescribing in Manitoba.”
About Care Management Technologies
Care Management Technologies is a North Carolina based data analytics company with specific expertise in behavioral health. CMT works across the U.S. and Canada supporting payers and providers in improving the quality of life and care for persons with behavioral health needs, including those with comorbid mental illness, developmental disabilities and substance dependencies. To learn more please visit http://cmthealthcare.com
Press Contact
Carol Clayton, PhD
President and CEO
cclayton@cmthealthcare.com
919-674-2547
Leigh Steiner, PhD
Director, Clinical Applications
lsteiner@cmthealthcare.com
217-891-1439