Working Caregiver- Elderly and Senior Medications
Are your aging loved ones taking their meds properly? How do they avoid drug related interactions? Do you know?
Help for Elderly and Seniors Taking Medications
Scientists and researchers show that prescribing practices can create problems and may need new methods for improvement. From a study brought to us by The Lancet, 2007.
In Europe, researchers investigated prescribing practices for the elderly and studied if the current practices could be improved or even measured. Research form a study shows that one patient out of five older patients in Europe have been prescribed at least one drug that was inappropriate. What would help solve the problem requires better care coordination through the various health care providers such as doctors, nurses and pharmacists.
Another investigative study was done in Canada and Europe, which addresses the challenge of managing drug interactions in the elderly, showed that study calculated that 46 percent of older patients were experiencing at least one potentially dangerous drug-to-drug interaction. In another study, And another thirty-seven per cent of patients found to be taking at least one medication their doctors didn't know about. How many times do we hide from our doctors and pharmacists all the meds, vitamins, and over-the-counter drugs we take?
How can we resolve this precription problem for our aging loved ones? Is it with using drug databases that alerts doctors to possible interactions at the time of prescribing? The study continued to say that authors also calls for better care coordination, and noted that the database drug interaction software can be a "reference source", but any generated recommendations have to be tempered by a holistic, geriatric, multiprofessional approach that is team-based. Do they have time for such inquiry? How can the family get more involved in helping their elderly family member take proper meds?
There is something families and seniors can do to be "more involved", in addition to being honest about their presciptions and how they are taking them... Attend an ExtraTour - sponsored by CVS Pharmacy. You will be able to meet one-on-one with a pharmacist, if you choose!
For more information visit MyExtraTour.com or call 1-800-403-8238.
