Managing Medications: A Step To Better Health

Which of these products found in many medicine cabinets are drugs?

• A. Aspirin
• B. Eye drops for glaucoma
• C. Antibiotic capsules
• D. Vitamin pills

The correct answer is "all of the above."

A medicine or "drug" is any substance used to treat a disease or improve health – medications prescribed by a doctor and filled by a pharmacist AND over-the-counter medications you can buy without a prescription.

People over 65 take more prescription and over-the-counter medications than any other age group, according to the National Institute on Aging. It's not unusual for an older person to take 13 or 14 different drugs each day including those prescribed by their doctor and over-the-counter preparations. Medications are an essential and often expensive part of the lives of most people as they get older.

If your parent or loved one has several illnesses, medication management often seems like a fulltime job. Getting older increases the risk of drug-related side effects in older adults because age affects how medicines are absorbed and used in the body. While medications keep older people healthy, they can also cause serious side effects if they aren't taken correctly or are combined with other prescription or nonprescription medicines or alcohol.

THE DOCTOR'S ROLE

At least once a year schedule an appointment with your loved one's primary care physician. Bring along a bag filled with all the medications your parent takes including vitamins, laxatives, eye drops, and nasal sprays. The doctor can review when each drug was prescribed, if it is helping the condition it was prescribed for, and if it is being taken correctly.

When the doctor writes a prescription for a new medicine, review the instructions for taking it with him or her before you and your loved one leave the office. Ask him if a generic equivalent of the drug is available, if there are foods or medications that may interact with the new drug, and if it's okay for your loved one to drink alcohol while taking it. Write down the information and don't hesitate to call the doctor if you have more questions.

Try to limit the number of medications your loved one takes. Don't feel that a doctor's appointment isn't complete if you don't leave with a prescription. To make managing medications easier for you and your loved one ask the doctor if one drug can be used to treat more than one condition.

THE PHARMACIST'S ROLE

It's important for you to be aware of the many medications your loved one takes. Besides your loved one's doctor, the pharmacist can help you and your loved one learn how to take prescribed medications, understand how they will improve his or her health, and recognize possible side effects.

Get all your loved one's prescriptions filled at the same pharmacy. The pharmacist will get to know your loved one and will keep an up-to-date list of his medications. If your loved one has trouble swallowing pills ask the pharmacist if the medicine is available in liquid or powder form or if pills can be crushed and mixed with foods safely. The pharmacist can answer questions about food and drug interactions, possible side effects of new medicines, and when and how they should be taken.

Many pharmacies have websites that make it easy for you to refill prescriptions online, receive email reminders to refill prescriptions, and find information about medications, diseases, medical procedures, Medicare Part D and other useful health topics.

DISPOSING OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS SAFELY

If your loved one has leftover or outdated prescription medicines it's important to dispose of them safely. Don't flush unused prescription drugs down the toilet or sink unless the label on the medicine says you should. Contact your city or county government to find out if your community has a program for collecting and disposing of unused medications.

If your community does not have such a program, follow these guidelines from the United States Office of National Drug Control Policy for discarding medications:

• Take unused or expired prescription drugs out of the original containers and throw them in with other trash.
• Mix prescription drugs with coffee grounds or cat litter and put them in empty cans or seal them in plastic bags.
• Flush drugs down the toilet if the label specifically instructs you to do so. A list of these drugs is available on the Internet at the U.S. Food & Drug Administration website.

MAKING THE MOST OF MEDICINES

Brainstorm with your loved one to develop a system for taking medications every day. You can buy a daily or weekly pill organizer or use an egg carton to organize a day's worth of medications or schedule your parent's medications around meals or favorite TV shows.

Encourage your loved one to learn as much as he can about his medicines and to ask the doctor about possible side effects, foods and other drugs (including alcoholic drinks) that he should avoid, and what he should do if he misses a dose.