The epidemiology of prescribing in an urban general practice.

The total prescribing in an urban general practice was recorded over a six-month period and classified according to the length of time that drugs were continued. The number of patients receiving any prescription rose with age, as did the total number of items per patient prescribed for; while the continued items rose with age, the number of items prescribed once only per patient remained constant in all age groups. The bulk of the total prescribing was for the elderly and this was mainly for continued items. The classification also shows that certain drug groups are liable to be continued whereas others are virtually always prescribed once only. The implications of these findings for self-audit of prescribing and the care of the elderly in general practice are discussed.