A NATIONAL audit of how medication use is governed in residential aged care has revealed a wide variation in the structure and function of Medication Advisory Committees (MACs) across the country.
A MAC is a multidisciplinary committee that provides overarching governance of medication management within residential care homes, and is central to promoting medication safety, particularly around managing the issue of polypharmacy (the use of nine or more medications simultaneously).
The Department of Health, Disability and Ageing recommends that all residential care homes have access to a MAC to support safe use of medications and, ultimately, mitigate risks associated with inappropriate prescribing.
The national audit examined how MACs function across their four recommended operational domains: policy development, risk management, education and quality improvement.
It was led by researchers from the Centre for Medicine Use and Safety (CMUS), within the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences.
The audit involved 120 MACs overseeing 642 residential care homes - almost a quarter of the total number in Australia.
The findings show that MACs are actively involved in policy and risk oversight - with 59% of MACs performing all recommended policy functions and 53% performing all recommended risk oversight functions, with further opportunities for capacity building and long-term improvement.
Overall, 41% fulfilled all educational roles, and 28% were fully engaged in quality improvement initiatives.
"This audit highlights both the strengths and the areas needing targeted support in how we manage and govern medication safety in aged care," said CMUS research fellow and lead author, Dr Amanda Cross.
"MACs have the potential to lead transformational change in this sector - if adequately supported and resourced."
With the new strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards due to commence on 01 Jul 2025, Dr Cross said MACs are well positioned to support implementation and monitoring of Quality Standard 5 to ensure delivery of safe and quality clinical care. KB
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