This pilot study shows that the application of the FORTA list is feasible in geriatric patients. In this small study, the medication quality improved in the intervention group, but polypharmacy persisted in both groups. The fall rate was significantly lower in the intervention group. These encouraging results must be interpreted carefully.

This uncontrolled pilot study indicates that the FORTA criteria can be used in day-to-day clinical care: it describes the quality of changes in drug treatment in a geriatric ward in a plausible way. This study has provided basic uncontrolled data which should be validated in controlled studies comparing the quality of treatment with or without the use of the FORTA criteria. (DKRS-ID: DRKS00000531).