Safe Medication Management
Complications due to improper medication management can be serious. According to a March 2003 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, nearly 40 percent of adverse drug events are categorized as serious, life-threatening or fatal. However, the older we get, the more we rely on medications to combat health issues.
“The prevailing philosophy is to start low, go slow when it comes to adding medications,” said Jeannine Powell, Ph.D., CGP, owner of Right at Home of Morgantown, WV. “You try to build dosages and add medications only as really needed, because side effects can cause serious health problems.”
Over the past 25 years, medication use has been on the rise, Powell said, as more medications have become available on the market and address more health problems than ever before. More than 80 percent of adverse drug reactions in the elderly are preventable, according to a February 2004 study published in British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. As a result, physicians have adapted a defensive approach to handling new symptoms among seniors to minimize adverse drug effects.
The statement “Any symptom in an elderly patient should be considered a drug side effect until proven otherwise,” from Brown University’s 1995 Long-Term Care Quality Letter (J. Gurwitz, M. Monane, S. Monane and J. Avorn), has become a widely accepted practice.
Additionally, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) requires that residents of nursing homes, and in many cases assisted living facilities, have their medications reviewed at least monthly, in order to identify, prevent and manage medication-related problems.
But seniors living at home are on their own. Seniors should keep a list of their medications and show it to every physician at every checkup. Also, using a single pharmacy for all medications can help to prevent dangerous mixing of medications. And care facilities are not the only ones who can make use of a consultant pharmacist, either.
“A consultant pharmacist with a geriatric specialty can review your loved one’s medications and help protect them against the risk of dangerous side effects. A good place to start looking for a consultant pharmacist is the American Society of Consultant Pharmacists,” Powell said.
Right at Home is your international expert for issues related to caring for your loved one and is dedicated to keeping you informed about home care. Right at Home offers in-home care and assistance so your loved one can continue living independently and enjoying a vibrant life. Our caregivers are screened, trained, bonded and insured prior to entering your home so you can trust us with the caregiving while you focus on your loved one.
I agree with Sharon about keeping in touch with your pharmacist. I keep a laminated printed copy of all my husband's medications in my wallet and update as necessary. This way when I go to the doctor, hospital or pharmacy, I have all the current information. I also update frequently this information with Medic Alert. My husband wears a bracelet and I have a caregiver bracelet which links me to him just in case we are in an accident and I am unable to talk. All very important with the loads of medications our seniors are taking today.
Thank you for reading our blog and posting your comment! It's wonderful that you are so prepared in case there is an emergency. It will help emergency responders do their jobs quicker and safer and you will receive the appropriate care faster.