Medication Management – Things to Consider
As one ages, the medicine in the bathroom cabinet starts to fill up pretty quickly to address additional health challenges.
Over time it can be difficult to keep track of the prescription history. To avoid further complications it’s important to keep a few things in mind if you’re helping an elder parent or a loved one.
First and foremost, talk to your parent or loved one and create a list of all of the current medications they’re actively taking.
Better yet, get a list from their doctor. Oftentimes, a print out of the office visit summary, provided by the general practitioner/physician (who will review the medications with the patient during the visit), will list current medications.
Make sure you have the most recent copy of this list on hand.
Review the products in your parent or loved one’s medicine cabinet along with the list.
Beware of Duplicate Medicines
One of the main things people don’t realize about medication is that there can be unknown redundancy between prescription and over-the-counter drugs. For instance, an individual may take cold syrup for a cough not realizing there is acetaminophen in the product. Later, for back pain they may take 2 Tylenol.
Voila, they have just duplicated the amount of medication without realizing it. In addition, some ingredients have side effects that can affect elders who metabolize medications more slowly. For instance, diphenhydramine, present in both Tylenol PM and Benedryl, can cause dizziness and contribute to falls.
Scheduling Medication
In addition, multiple medications with different time schedules can add conflict or confusion. Make sure that pill containers are easy to navigate and that medicine with different schedules is set aside accordingly.
It’s helpful to ask if there are medications that are still getting refilled that don’t need to be. Are there any outdated medications in the house? Make sure all containers are labeled and all prescriptions at the pharmacy are updated and refillable if needed.
Never try to change medicine regimens or allow your parent to change regimens without first consulting their doctor(s). Like all things these days, change is a given. Make sure you re-assess the medication situation at regular intervals depending on your parent or loved one’s condition.
Review and Adjust
Maybe you need to re-assess every three months or maybe every six months. Either way, it will give everyone peace of mind to know that the situation is being managed.
Find out how Broad Street can help with medication management. Broad Street’s personal assistants can assist with refills and issuing reminders, along with other management tools.