Page 17 - Mid Valley Times 11-4-21 E-edition

Thursday, November 4, 2021 | A17 | Mid Valley TiMes
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That Rainbow of Colorful Medications may be Harmful to Your Health
By Ro Linscheid
Recently one of the retirement residents was showing me a medicine cup with
an amazing amount of medications in it. They varied in color, size and shape. The resident thought he could name each one and what it was for or at least he thought he could.
Seniors who take a number of
medications could be at risk of delirium, falls, adverse drug events, hospital ad- mission and possibly death. The practice
of medicine has be- come so specialized
it is not surprising that people see many different “specialists” in their lifetime. The “specialists” can pre- scribe medications not knowing what other medications, vitamins or tonics you are tak- ing. You end up with
a handful of colorful pills to take several times a day.
These medica- tions can interact with each other causing unwanted side effects, cancel each other or become ineffective if taken for too long a time. If you do not have a primary doc- tor monitoring all your medications you
could be over-loaded, struggling with your health.
The pharmacy industry is provid-
ing Nursing Homes, such as Sierra View Homes, a pharma- cist to review the resident’s charts and make recommen-
dations on “de-pre- scribing medications.” De-prescribing is the process of tapering, stopping, discontinu- ing, or withdrawing drugs. The hopeful goal is to improve the lives of the frail senior population by lessen- ing the number of medications they take and/or decreasing
the chance of nega- tive drug interaction. Many residents in a Nursing Care Center take nine (9) or more medications. Over- the-counter drugs and vitamins are included in the count. Some people are taking close to 20 medica-
tionsP. hysicians are encouraged to look
at the medication used by their pa- tients. It is impor- tant to look at the type of medications their patient is using, how long the person has been taking the medication(s) and how the medication(s) could be working together or interfer- ing with each other. They are encouraged to assess the need of the medication, im- prove outcomes and decrease risks associ- ated with taking many medications. All this
and keep up with new medication and or medications that the FDA has pulled back on.
All older people could possibly benefit from a medication re- view. De-prescribing is importantly focused on the frail seniors. As people age and the number of doctors seen increases medi- cation list. It becomes more and more im- portant to see your primary doctor to do a medication review. Also, take your medi- cation list to every doctor’s appointment you have. Keep your list of medications current so your doctor can help you control what you take for the best outcome.
are taking too many medications it is im- portant to work with your doctor. Do not stop medications by yourself due to possi- ble negative reactions to stopping the medi- cation. Some medica- tions must be reduced slowly so make an ap- pointment with your doctor. Take the list of all medication you are taking including any and all ove-the- counter medications to your appointment. Your doctor can then work with you to readjust your medica- tions.
Once a medica- tion is selected to be decreased or stopped, you and/or your care- giver needs to be involved in the plan.
require tapering the decrease and pay-
ing close attention
to monitor for with- drawal-related and/or adverse events. There is a chance it may be necessary to restart the medication.
Sierra View Homes participates in the national drive to lower psychotro- pic medications. We are excited to see the residents become more expressive. We are constantly looking for non-medication methods to keep our residents feeling calm and comfortable. The nursing staff work closely with the pri- mary care physicians to monitor how each person reacts to the decrease of medica-
We live in a society that has used medication to treat many ailments. Add to that the well-mar- keted vitamins and supplements. Pills are chemicals, so is food and all the over-the- counter offerings. See your doctor to review all the medication you are taking and set up a plan on what to do. Do not stop prescrip- tion medication on your own. Be part of the team in moni- toring and tracking changes in your well- being. Give yourself time to make slow changes allowing for the best outcome for a
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