Centre for Medicine Use and Safety

The use of medicines is a very common health-related action taken by Australians. In any two-week period, around 70% of Australians (and 90% of older Australians) will have taken at least one medicine. Nearly 80% of visits to the local doctor result in a prescription and over 200 million prescriptions are dispensed in community pharmacies each year. The majority of people admitted to hospitals and those living in residential aged care facilities are receiving one or more medicines. While medicines can have amazing beneficial effects in relieving symptoms of disorders, curing diseases and improving quality of life, they may also cause problems - many of which are preventable.

Inadequate systems for the prescribing, dispensing and administration of medicines, or a breakdown in the application of the systems, can lead to medication errors or incidents that can have adverse outcomes for patients (e.g. wrong drug prescribed, dispensed or administered). In addition, the prescribing of an appropriate medicine in an appropriate dose may lead to an adverse event or may not be effective especially if the patient does not adhere to the directions for the correct use of the medicine.

Researchers within the Centre for Medicine Use and Safety are working collaboratively with other health care professionals and researchers to develop, implement and evaluate new models and systems of health care practice, with the ultimate goal of optimising the safe and effective use of medicines. Members of the Centre have extensive experience in the application of quantitative and qualitative research methods to address issues around the safe and effective use of medicines.

The Centre for Medicine Use and Safety has two research nodes in Melbourne. One is within the Department of Pharmacy Practice at the faculty campus in Parkville, while the second node is located within the Department of Pharmacy at The Alfred Hospital. The physical location of the two nodes means that the Centre’s researchers have excellent access to multidisciplinary research collaborators and they are in an ideal position to address issues around medicine use and safety across all sectors – the home, the broader community, hospitals, residential aged-care facilities and the interfaces between these sectors.

Co-directors Prof Carl Kirkpatrick , Michael Dooley