Jørund Straand, Associate Professor, Section for General Practice

Jørund Straand, MD
Ass. Professor

RESEARCH ON PRESCRIBING AND WITHDRAWAL OF DRUG TREATMENT IN GENERAL PRACTICE

Since I finished medical school in Bergen in 1977, I have worked as a general practitioner in the city of Bergen during most years. Since 1988 I have been part-time lecturer at the Section for General Practice. Presently I am full time employed at this institute as an associate professor. My main research interests are in developing "tools" and strategies for the GPs for monitoring long term drug treatment especially in the case of elderly patients. I am interested in strategies and procedures for prevention of polypharmacy and hence strategies for discontinuation of (unneccesary) drugs for the elderly . Another interest in medicine is History of medicine.

Please contact me if you work with related subjects or share the same interests.

1. Research on drug prescribing in general practice. The Møre & Romsdal Prescription Study (MRPS)

In the county of Møre and Romsdal all the GPs recorded all GP-patient contacts and all prescriptions during two periods of one month. 90,458 contacts were recorded during wich 74,078 drugs were prescribed. The MRPS was orginally initiated by Dr. Kirsten Rokstad. We have made the following papers based on this study:

• Rokstad K, Straand J, Fugelli P. Can drug treatment be improved by feedback on prescribing profiles combined with therapeutic recommendations? A prospective, controlled trial in general practice. J Clin Epidemiol 1995;48:1061-8.

• Straand J, Rokstad K. Should general practitioners (GPs) improve their prescribing patterns of diuretics? A report from the Møre & Romsdal Prescription Study. J Scand Prim Health Care 1997; 15: 10-5.

• Straand J, Rokstad K. Do general practitioners' prescribing patterns of benzodiazepine hypnotics place elderly patients at particular risk for overprescribing? A report from the Møre & Romsdal Prescription Study. J Scand Prim Health Care 1997; 15: 16-21.

• Rokstad K, Straand J, Fugelli. General Practitioners' Drug Prescribing Practice and Diagnoses for Prescribing. The Møre & Romsdal Prescription study. J Clin Epidemiol 1997;50:485- 94.

• Rokstad K, Straand J. Prescribing during indirect and direct contacts with patients in general practice? Scand J Prim Health Care 1997; 15: 103-8.

• Straand J, Rokstad K. Do general practitioners' prescribing patterns of benzodiazepine hypnotics place elderly patients at particular risk? Eur J Clin Pharmacol 1995;48:A411.

• Rokstad K, Straand J, Sandvik H. Pasientkontakter i allmennpraksis. En epidemiologisk undersøkelse i Møre og Romsdal. (Patient encounters in general practice. An epidemiological survey in Møre & Romsdal. English summary). Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 1997; 117: 659-64.

• Straand J, Rokstad K, Sandvik H. Prescribing of systemic antibiotics in general practice. A report from the Møre & Romsdal Prescription Study. J Scand Prim Health care 1998; 16: 121-7.

• Straand J, Rokstad K, Heggedal U. Drug prescribing for children in general practice. A report from the Møre & Romsdal Prescription Study. Acta Paediatr 1998; 87: 218-24.

• Straand J, Rokstad K. Elderly patients in general practice: diagnoses, drugs, and inappropriate prescribing. A report from the Møre & Romsdal Prescription Study. Family Practice 1999; 16: accepted for publication.

• Straand J, Sandvik H, Rokstad K. 10 850 kontorkonsultasjoner med eldre pasienter i allmennpraksis. Fra diagnose- reseptundersøkelsen i Møre og Romsdal. (10 850 office consultations with elderly patients in general practice. A report from the Møre & Romsdal Prescription Study. English summary.) Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 1997; 117: 3980-4.

• Straand J, Sandvik H. 1 384 hjemmebesøk til eldre pasienter i allmennpraksis. Fra diagnose- reseptundersøkelsen i Møre og Romsdal. (1 384 house calls for elderly patients in general practice. A report from the Møre & Romsdal Prescription Study. English summary.) Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 1997; 117: 3984-7.

• Nygaard H, Straand J. Prescribing for painful conditions in adult and elderly patients in general practice. A report from the Møre & Romsdal Prescription Study. Nor J Epidemiol 1998; 8: 115-20.

• Straand J, Sandvik H. Home visits in general practice - most often for elderly patients. A report from the Møre & Romsdal Prescription Study. Nor J Epidemiol 1998; 8: 121-6.

• Straand J, Sandvik H, Rokstad K. General practitioners' office consultations with elderly patients - diagnoses and prescriptions. A report from the Møre & Romsdal Prescription Study. Nor J Epidemiol 1998; 8: 127-32.

2. Research on withdrawal (discontinuation) of long term drug treatment in general practice

• Straand J, Fugelli P, Laake K. Withdrawing long-term diuretic treatment among elderly patients in general practice. Fam Pract 1993; 10: 38-42.

• Straand J. The epidemiology of discontinuation of long term drug treatment in general practice. In preparation.

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Department of Public Health and Primary Health Care, last updated 27.01.00