2026/27 Programme update

The Polypharmacy Programme has been refreshed for 2026/27 to support frail and older people at risk of medication-related harm.

Locally, we will work with partners to use prescribing data, improve Structured Medication Reviews, promote patient resources, support workforce education and build a sustainable learning system across the West of England.

Get involved: Contact healthinnowest.transformation@nhs.net to find out more about local programme activity.

Programme background

As part of the Health Innovation Network’s on-going cluster, Preventing Problematic Polypharmacy, we are supporting local health and care partners to identify people at risk from problematic polypharmacy and improve conversations about medicines.

For 2026/27, the programme has been refreshed to support local systems to reduce avoidable medication-related harm in frail and older people. We will work with Integrated Care Boards, Primary Care Networks, GP practices, community pharmacy, frailty services, secondary care and voluntary sector partners to support safer prescribing, high-quality Structured Medication Reviews and better patient engagement.

Starting in June 2026, this three-year programme will support clinicians to address problematic polypharmacy by increasing the use of population health management tools, upskilling and increasing the confidence of the workforce, establishing wider learning systems, and integrating digital and AI technologies.

Preventing Problematic Polypharmacy will build on our successful national Polypharmacy programme that ran from 2022 to 2025, supporting increased engagement with seldom heard communities and changing public behaviour through the continued scaling of our suite of patient resources and collaboration with the VCSE sector. The programme has an increased focus on frailty and taking full advantage of digital technologies, and we also plan to increase our engagement with secondary care and community pharmacy.

What is the problem we’re addressing?

Polypharmacy means taking many medicines. This is sometimes appropriate, but it can become problematic when medicines are no longer needed, cause side effects, interact with each other, or create a burden for the person taking them.

As more people live longer with multiple long-term conditions, the number of medicines they take often increases. This can contribute to falls, frailty, adverse drug reactions, avoidable hospital admissions, medicines waste and reduced quality of life.

NHSBSA data from March 2025 identified 718,577 people aged 65 and over who were prescribed 10 or more medicines, equal to 9.1% of the population. If current trends continue, this could rise to 1,148,279 people by 2036.

Medication-related harm also creates a significant financial burden. Programme materials note that adverse drug reactions contribute to an estimated 16.5% of unplanned hospital admissions, with an extrapolated cost to the NHS in England of £2.21 billion.

Most harm from problematic polypharmacy is preventable. The programme supports the NHS 10-Year Plan shifts from treatment to prevention, hospital to community, and analogue to digital, by using data to identify people at risk, improving medicines reviews closer to home, and supporting digital and patient-facing resources.

About the programme

The three-year Preventing Problematic Polypharmacy programme initially covers East Midlands, Wessex and the West of England.

  • Planning phase: April to July 2026
  • Implementation phase: August 2026 to September 2028
  • Evaluation phase: October 2028 to March 2029

Watch the programme re-launch recording on Vimeo.

What are we trying to achieve in 2026/27?

In 2026/27, our local aim is to support a coordinated, data-driven and person-centred approach to reducing problematic polypharmacy across the West of England.

Successful delivery will support:

  • Reduced medication-related harm for frail and older people.
  • A reduction in the number of people aged 75 and over taking 10 or more medicines, where medicines can be safely optimised.
  • Increased use of NHSBSA Polypharmacy Prescribing Comparators to identify people most at risk.
  • More targeted, high-quality Structured Medication Reviews.
  • Improved confidence among clinicians to discuss, reduce or stop medicines where appropriate.
  • Better patient understanding and shared decision-making about medicines.
  • Safer and more efficient repeat prescribing processes, with less oversupply and medicines waste.
  • A stronger local learning system that connects primary care, community pharmacy, secondary care, frailty services, Integrated Care Boards and voluntary sector partners.

How will we do this?

For 2026/27, the programme uses a five-pillar implementation approach (building on the previous three-pillar model).

Pillar 1: Population health management

We will support local systems to use NHSBSA Polypharmacy Prescribing Comparators and the NHSBSA Over Supply Dashboard to identify people at greatest risk of harm. This includes people aged 75 and over, people prescribed 10 or more medicines, people living with frailty, and people at risk from specific medicine combinations.

We will also support better Structured Medication Review data capture by encouraging the mapping of SNOMED codes and GP appointment slot codes. This will help local teams understand review activity more accurately.

Pillar 2: Education and learning

We will promote education and learning opportunities for GPs, pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, frailty nurses and other healthcare professionals involved in medicines reviews. This includes Polypharmacy Action Learning Sets, national masterclasses, NHSBSA data webinars and local learning opportunities.

The aim is to increase confidence in shared decision-making, deprescribing and safer medicines optimisation. Evidence from the programme shows that Action Learning Sets have helped clinicians feel more confident to stop or reduce medicines where appropriate, in partnership with patients.

Pillar 3: Changing public behaviour

We will support local partners to share patient-facing resources that help people prepare for Structured Medication Reviews. These resources explain what a medication review is, why it matters, and what questions patients may want to ask.

The resources are available in a range of formats, including translated versions, Easy Read and audio materials. This helps more people take part in meaningful conversations about their medicines.

Pillar 4: Digital innovation

We will support national and local work to identify digital, artificial intelligence and technology opportunities that could help address problematic polypharmacy. This may include tools that support risk identification, Structured Medication Review workflows, patient preparation, repeat prescribing or evaluation.

We will also support work to embed patient resources into digital routes, including the NHS App and GP systems where possible.

Pillar 5: Learning systems and networks

We will help establish or strengthen local learning systems so partners can share practice, barriers, learning and improvement ideas. This includes connecting Integrated Care Boards, Primary Care Networks, community pharmacy, secondary care, frailty teams, voluntary sector partners and national networks.

This builds on the previous West of England Polypharmacy Community of Practice and the wider Health Innovation Network Polypharmacy Shared Learning Network.

What will happen locally in 2026/27?

During 2026/27 we will work with local partners to:

  • Agree one or more local polypharmacy priority areas using NHSBSA prescribing data.
  • Support Integrated Care Boards and Primary Care Networks to complete a polypharmacy maturity assessment.
  • Promote education and learning opportunities for clinicians.
  • Support targeted Structured Medication Reviews for people most at risk.
  • Share patient-facing resources through GP practices, community pharmacy and voluntary sector partners.
  • Support local use of the Repeat Prescribing Toolkit and Over Supply Dashboard.
  • Improve data capture for Structured Medication Reviews.
  • Develop local case studies, learning summaries and impact reporting.

View further information on working with our partners on polypharmacy, including supporting Primary Care Networks and helping health care professionals to put national policy into practice.

Resources and events

For upcoming events, see our events page.

Preventing Problematic Polypharmacy 2026-2029:

To view previous polypharmacy Masterclasses, visit our Polypharmacy Masterclass video showcase.

To view Polypharmacy: Getting the Balance Right 2022-2025 webinar recordings, visit our Polypharmacy video showcase.

Resources to support patients having a Structured Medication Review

We have developed a range of new evidence-based resources as part of the Health Innovation Network’s national Polypharmacy programme to support and help prepare people who have been invited for a Structured Medication Review with their GP, pharmacist or other healthcare professional.

View the preparing for a medication review animation on Vimeo. 

Designed to encourage shared decision making about medicines, the NHS-branded resources are free for healthcare professionals to use with patients and are available in a range of formats and languages. These include English, Arabic, Bengali, Gujarati, Polish, Punjabi Gurmukhi, Punjabi Shahmukhi, Romanian, and Urdu, as well as audio versions for visually impaired people. Visit the Health Innovation Network website to download the resources.

Helping patients take their medicines safely: reasonable adjustments

Health Innovation West of England has also created a suite of a free resources to help patients take their medicines safely. These resources focus on improving understanding of the range of, and process for selecting reasonable adjustments for patients who may be encountering challenges with taking multiple medicines.

Resources include a video, decision tree poster and assessment form for use by healthcare professionals. We have also created a short video for patients, carers and families.

Additional resources and information are available from the Health Innovation Network’s Polypharmacy webpage.

Contact

If you have any questions about our Polypharmacy programme, please contact healthinnowest.transformation@nhs.net.