First prize EAHP for best Research
On March 12, 2025, hospital pharmacist Judith de Ruijter, nominated for best research, gave a presentation on her research titled "CONTINUED USE OF POTENTIALLY INAPPROPRIATE MEDICATION AFTER HOSPITAL DISCHARGE: A RETROSPECTIVE COHORT STUDY" at the EAHP (European Association of Hospital Pharmacists) congress in Copenhagen (with approximately 3200 participants). Eight nominees out of more than 1000 abstracts were selected to give a presentation.
In her presentation, Judith shared the results of her research, which showed that medications started in the hospital (opiates, benzodiazepines, and antipsychotics), which are expected to be used short-term, are often continued long-term in the home setting. A significant number of patients continued to use these medications after discharge for more than six months: 13% of patients using opiates, 21% of patients using benzodiazepines, and 36% of patients using antipsychotics. This can result in dependency, side effects, and possibly even readmission. These results highlight the importance of evaluating medications at discharge and providing a stop date or discontinuing them.
This research is being conducted in collaboration with OLVG hospital Amsterdam, University Utrecht (UU), and EPIC (Electronic Patient Record OLVG). Co-authors of the article include Marjo Janssen, Annemariek Driessen, Carl Siegert, Alex Marmorale, Daniala Weir, and Fatma Karapinar-Çarkit.
On Friday, March 14, Judith received the 1st prize for best abstract/poster!
The abstract can be found on page A187 of the attachment.