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As a result of our increasing longevity, medications play a major role in the treatment of chronic illnesses among individuals 65 and over. Individuals frequently suffer from more than one chronic illness. Often individuals can experience as many as 3 to 5 different illnesses with increasing age, all requiring prescription medications to help manage the symptoms, improve quality of life, and slow the progression of the illness.
The benefits of medications are enormous, but due to the natural biological changes of aging and disease, the risk factor grows. As the number of medications increase and usage extends over long periods of time, advancing age can tend to make individuals more sensitive to drugs than younger people, perhaps due to decreasing muscle tissue and changes in organ function.
Before prescribing any new drug, a doctor should be aware of all the other medications the patient is taking, including prescription and non-prescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. As for dosages, the adage of “Start low and go slow” may be good advice when dealing with an individual with many medications and chronic illnesses.
Madeline Feinberg, Pharm. D., a pharmacist and former director of the Elder Health program of the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, states: "Too often, older people get more drugs without a reassessment of their previous medications. You are a partner in your health care. This is a partnership between you, your doctor, and your pharmacist. You need to be assertive and knowledgeable about the medications you take.
Lack of knowledge and information
How many elders describe their prescription drugs in general terms, such as “I take the pink pill in the morning, a green one and a blue one at night”?
Do you know the generic names of your medications? What the dosage is? What is the reason you are taking the drug? Many individuals do not, but this is very important information.
A Medication Record listing the names of all prescribed medications, over the counter drugs, and herbal supplements and vitamins you are taking, along with the reason or diagnosis, color and shape, start and stop dates, prescribing doctor, dosage and instructions will help you and your physician maintain better control over your health and well-being.
Ask yourself the following questions. These questions offer some of the important reasons to complete and maintain a Medication Record:
- Do you know the names and dosages of all your medications?
- Do you see more than one doctor?
- Does your primary care doctor know what medication the specialist has prescribed and vice-versa?
- Do you bring current medication lists to all of your appointments for the doctor and staff to copy and update your medical chart?
- Do you update your medication record whenever any changes are made or new prescriptions started?
- Perhaps you had a reaction to a prescribed medication. Do you remember the name of the drug? What sort of reaction occurred?
- If you go to the emergency room for an acute situation, will you be able to remember accurately from memory all of the names, dosages, and reason for all of your medications correctly?
Be sure to carry a copy of the medication record with you at all times, as in an emergency situation it can save valuable time, and possibly your life.
New medications and simple steps to safeguard your well-being
Your doctor should explain the purpose of any new prescription medicine, and ascertain that you fully understand why this course of treatment has been started. Your responsibility, in your partnership with your doctor, is to ask questions about any new medication (such as the questions listed below). Take notes of the answers provided by your health care provider as handwritten prescriptions are often difficult to read.
- What is the name of this medication? (Written prescriptions are often illegible, and too many drugs have similar names. For example: Fosomax (for bone loss) and Flomax (for enlarged prostate).
- Why is this drug being prescribed?
- What form does the drug come in? (Tablet, capsule or liquid?)
- When should I take this medication?
- How often and how much should I take it?
- What should I do if I miss a dose?
- What are the common side effects? What should I pay attention to?
- Are there foods, drugs, I should avoid while taking this medicine?
- Should I take it with or without food?
- Are there any activities I should avoid while taking the medication? (Driving can be dangerous if the drug makes you drowsy.
- How long will I be on this medication?
- Will this medication correct the problem?
- Do I need tests to find out if the medicine is working?
- Do I need any screening test while I am on the medication for warning markers such as liver or kidney function levels?
- How much does this medication cost?
- Is there a generic drug available?
When you receive the medication from your pharmacist, compare it with your notes to be certain that you received the correct medication, dosage and instructions.
Once you begin a new medication, you are responsible to make note of any new or unusual symptoms you may experience, such as dizziness, constipation, diarrhea, a rash, blurred vision, mood changes, or others, and report these to your healthcare provider.
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