Table 1 Categorising the scenarios by types of prescribing problems

Inappropriate for the population (n = 4)

2 (pregnancy), 15 (renal impairment), 18 (hepatic impairment), 19 (older people with a history of falls)

4

4

Opioid-disease interaction (n = 8)

1 (substance abuse history), 3 (hypothyroidism), 4 (paralytic ileus), 5 (dementia), 6 (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or asthma), 8 (myasthenia gravis), 12 (galactose intolerance, lactase deficiency or glucose-galactose malabsorption), 20 (medical history of ventricular tachycardia)

4

5

Opioid-drug interaction (n = 4)

7 (carbamazepine, phenytoin, or phenobarbital), 9 (antidepressants), 10 (benzodiazepines), 11 (gabapentinoids)

1

2

Inappropriate dose (n = 1)

16 (≥ 120 mg of oral morphine equivalent dose per day)

1

1

Inappropriate duration (n = 1)

17 (> 3 months after surgery)

1

1

Omission (n = 2)

13 (patient with constipation and without a concurrently prescribed laxative), 14 (opioids ≥ 6 months without a concurrently prescribed laxative)

2

2