MEDICINES MANAGEMENT
The Irish Pharmacy Union (IPU) has encouraged older people and their families to proactively plan for the management of medications, and has urged elderly patients and their families to speak to their community pharmacist if they are unsure about how to take their medicines.
Community pharmacist and IPU Vice President Ann Marie Horan explained the importance of people understanding what medication they are taking: “As people get older, they are more likely to require multiple medications on a daily basis. Advancements in medications have improved our ability to live with disease and generally increased the duration of our lives. However, with multiple medicines, there is an increased chance of side-effects or harmful interactions between different medicines.”
The #KnowAskCheck IPU campaign (www.safermeds.ie) encourages people to know their medicines and keep a list, check that they are using the right medicine correctly, and to ask their pharmacist if they are unsure.
“Taking each medicine as prescribed and following the pharmacists’ instructions is very important in order to minimise any risks and to achieve maximum benefit from the medication. Anyone who is unsure about their medicine or has a query related to their medicine should always consult their community pharmacist, who will be more than willing to help and give advice on medication management,” said Ms Horan.
“It’s also important to remember that incorrectly taking medicines may reduce their effectiveness. This could mean people are less likely to recover from an illness, or it may allow a chronic condition to go untreated. If allowed to continue over a long period of time, a patient’s health and quality of life may deteriorate. This illustrates the importance of having ongoing engagement with your pharmacist about your medicines and of taking the medicines as advised.
“A 2012 report by the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing found that 69 per cent of those aged over 50 in Ireland take medications regularly, while one-in-five frequently take five or more medications. It can be difficult for older people and their families to manage medication, so it is important that they talk to their local pharmacist to avoid possible problems and prevent the risk of harmful drug interactions.”
Ms Horan concluded by advising older patients or their families to visit their local pharmacy: “Pharmacists are always available to answer any questions you may have about medication. It is essential that older people understand what their medicines are for, and raising any concerns they may have will allow them to be in a better position to get the maximum benefit from their medicines and therefore the best health outcome.”
