Association of a Communication Training Program with Use of Antipsychotics in Nursing Homes

Off-label antipsychotic prescribing in nursing homes (NHs) is common and is associated with increased risk of mortality in older adults. Prior large-scale, controlled trials in the NH setting failed to show meaningful reductions in antipsychotic use.This quasi-experimental longitudinal study of the OASIS communication training program examined antipsychotic use before and after intervention training in 93 nursing homes. OASIS nursing homes had greater antipsychotic use reductions compared with 831 nonintervention nursing homes, but this influence waned over time.