Prescription Drug Safety
Part 1of 2
Click here for a Printable Version
Prescription Drug Safety is a Team Effort :
After working in the garden, your knee hurts, so you take a couple of aspirin tablets. Not a good idea if you are also taking the blood thinner Coumadin. Or the pollen gives you a stuffy nose, so you think a decongestant like Sudafed will help. Better think again if your doctor has prescribed a medicine to control your high blood pressure.
The more you know about your medicines and the more you talk with your health care professionals, the easier it is to avoid problems with medicines. As we age, it is important to know about our medicines to avoid possible problems. As we get older we may be faced with more health conditions that need treatment on a regular basis.
It is important to be aware that taking more medicines and normal body changes caused by aging can increase the chance of unwanted or even harmful drug interactions. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (www.fda.gov) lists four kinds of potentially dangerous drug interactions in older adults.
- Drug-Drug Interactions happen when two or more medications react with each other to cause unwanted effects. This kind of interaction can also cause one medicine to not work as well or even make one medicine stronger than it should be. That is why you should not take aspirin if you are taking a prescription blood thinner, unless your doctor tells you to.
- Drug-Condition Interactions occur when a medical condition you already have makes certain drugs potentially harmful. For instance, if you have high blood pressure or asthma, you could have an unwanted reaction if you use a decongestant.
- Drug-Food Interactions result from drugs reacting with food or drinks. In some cases, food in the digestive tract can affect how a drug is absorbed. Some medicines can also affect the way nutrients are stored or used in the body.
- Drug-Alcohol Interactions can happen when the medicine you take reacts with an alcoholic drink. As you grow older, your body may react differently to alcohol, as well as to the mix of alcohol and medicines. Keep in mind that some problems you might think are medicine-related, like loss of coordination, memory loss or irritability, could be the result of mixing one or more of your medicines with alcohol.
Many prescription medications have some side effects. These side effects are unplanned symptoms or feelings you have when taking a medicine. Most side effects are not serious and go away on their own. Others can be more bothersome and even serious.
Keep track of side effects to help your doctor know how your body is responding to a medication. New symptoms or mood changes may not be a result of getting older but could be a drug interaction. If you have unwanted side effects, let your doctor know right away. Don’t stop taking the medicine on your own without first talking with your doctor.
To prevent possible problems with medicines, seniors should work as a team with their doctors and pharmacists to help make sure they are taking the right medications for them, taking them properly, and avoiding risks for drug interactions.
Talk to Your Doctor :
It is important to go to all of your medical appointments and to talk to your doctor about your medical conditions, the medicines you take, and any health concerns you have.
It may help to make a list of comments, questions or concerns before your visit to your doctor. Also, think about having a relative or close friend come to your appointment with you if you are unsure about talking to your doctor or would like someone to help you understand or remember answers to your questions.
When you are talking with your doctor about your medications, remember:
- All Medicines Count: Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take, including both prescriptions and non-prescription (over-the-counter) medicines such as pain relievers, antacids, cold medicines and laxatives. Don’t forget to include eye drops, dietary supplements, vitamins, herbals and creams or ointments.
- Medical History: Your doctor needs to know if you have any food, medicine or other allergies. It is important to tell your doctor about any health conditions you have or had and how you are being treated or were treated for them by other doctors. Your primary care doctor should also know about any specialist doctors you are seeing.
- Eating Habits: If you follow or have recently changed to a special diet (very low-fat for example, or high-calcium) talk to your doctor about this. Tell your doctor how much coffee, tea or alcohol you drink each day and whether you smoke. These things can make a difference in the way your medicine works.
- Recognizing and Remembering to Take Your Medicines: Let your doctor know if you have trouble telling your medicines apart. The doctor can help you find better ways to recognize your pills, Also tell your doctor if you have problems remembering to take your medicines, or how much to take.
- Your Lifestyle: If you want to make your medicine schedule more simple, talk about it with your doctor. There may be other medications or methods that better fit your lifestyle.
- Put It in Writing: Ask your doctor to write out a complete medicine schedule, with directions on exactly when and how to take each medicine. Find out from your primary care doctor how your medicine schedule should e changed if you see more than one doctor.
When You Get a New Prescription :
The National Council on Patient Information and Education (http://www.talkaboutrx.org/index.jsp) recommends that, if your doctor prescribes a new medicine, you ask the following questions before leaving the office:
- What is the name of the medicine and what is it supposed to do?
- How and when do I take this medicine, and for how long?
- Should I take this medicine with water? With food? With other medicines?
- Can I take this medicine with over-the-counter medicines?
- What should I do if I miss or forget a dose?
- Should I take this medicine before, during or after meals?
- What is the timing of each dose? Does “four times a day” mean I have to take this medicine in the middle of the night?
- What do you mean by “as needed”?
- What foods, drinks, other medicines, dietary supplements or activities should I avoid while taking this medicine?
- Will any tests or monitoring be required while I am taking this medicine?
- What are the possible side effects and what should I do if they occur?
- When should I expect the medicine to start working, and how will I know if it is working?
- Will this new prescription work safely with the other prescription and over-the-counter medicines or dietary supplements I am taking?
Your doctor is an important member of your health care team, but your pharmacist and you both play a big part in making sure your medicines are as safe and effective as possible. We’ll find out more next time.
Remember that pharmacist Brian Morris presents information about a different illness or condition, and how drugs can be used to control it, each month at Maury River Senior Center. Call us at 261-7474 for details.
Other Tips from MRSC:
Lowering Cholesterol
Healthy AgingPrescription Drug Safety-Part 2