N/A
N=3,635
A Health System Wide Evaluation of Clinical Decision Support Tools to Improve PDMP Utilization and Patient Outcomes
Medication Abuse
Bottom Line
View on ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04918355 ↗Enrolled (actual)
3,635
Serious AEs
0.0%
Results posted
Sep 2025
Primary outcome: Primary: Percentage of PDMP Checks Conducted During High-risk Prescriptions — 8187; 6322; 13360; 23328 health care encounters
Study Design & Population
- Study type
- Observational
- Phase
- N/A
- Interventions
- Clinical Decision Support (CDS) alerts (Other)
- Age
- Pediatric, Adult, Older Adult · 12+ yrs
- Sex
- All
- Sponsor
- University of Colorado, Denver
- Primary completion
- May 2023
Outcome Measures
| Outcome | Result | p-value |
|---|---|---|
| PRIMARY Percentage of PDMP Checks Conducted During High-risk Prescriptions |
8187; 6322; 13360; 23328 | — |
| SECONDARY Percentage of High-risk Controlled Medication Prescriptions Abandoned |
538; 605; 768; 1314 | — |
| SECONDARY Long Term Opioid Use |
3,233; 5,565; 573; 2,414; 503; 731 | — |
Summary
This is a study comparing three clinical decision support (CDS) tools to enhance care by easing health care provider review of the Colorado prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) prior to prescribing opioids (pain medications often called narcotics) or benzodiazepines (sedatives or muscle relaxants). The tools screen information from the PDMP (a statewide database of filled controlled medication) and a patient's medical record to identify high-risk factors for overdose.
The tools only appear when relevant, are purely informational to facilitate an evidence-based practice (PDMP review) and do not dictate care or suggest changes in treatment.
The study will track how each of the tools are used and if providers use the PDMP. Secondary outcomes include if a controlled medication prescription was written and future opioid use by patients.
Eligibility Criteria
Two populations are included in the study description. Providers and the patients seen by those providers.
Providers are randomized to one of the four groups described previously.
Provider Inclusion Criteria:
- Licensed health care providers within the UCHealth system with a history (previous year) of prescribing opioids and/or benzodiazepines.
Provider Exclusion Criteria:
- Majority of prescribing is done at a facility outside the state of Colorado
- Provider specialty of oncology or pediatrics as recorded in the EHR
- Provider in an ambulatory clinic where a total of <50 opioid or benzodiazepine prescriptions were written in the year before study initiation
Patient Inclusion Criteria:
- Patient seen by a randomized provider within the UCHealth system who may receive an opioid prescription
Patient Exclusion Criteria:
- Less than 12 years of age or greater than 89 years of age at the time of the first study associated visit
- Active oncology or sickle cell diagnosis
- Active end of life care (defined as discharge to hospice or palliative care facility or specific palliative care orders in the medical record)
Data sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04918355). Outcome figures and adverse-event rates are extracted automatically from the registry's posted results and are provided for clinician reference, not as a substitute for the primary publication.