bsheets
Sat, Aug-25-07, 21:05
Warning: Check your pills
Kamahl Cogdon
August 24, 2007 12:00am
MEDICINE mishaps land more than 140,000 Australians in hospital every year.
Older people, the biggest users of medicines, are often the victims.
Now pharmacists and other health professionals are joining forces to raise awareness about when and how to use medicines safely.
National Prescribing Service chief executive Dr Lynn Weekes said that while medicines sometimes had unexpected side effects, most problems were preventable.
She said one of the most common mistakes people made was not understanding their medication.
"The one thing everybody could do better is know their medicine," Dr Weekes said. "Know not just the brand name, but the active ingredients in the medicine."
She said this helped identify any potential harmful interactions between different medications a person might be taking, including prescription drugs, over-the-counter remedies, herbal medications and vitamins.
This is the major focus of the Get to Know Your Medicines public awareness campaign, launched this month by the NPS, a non-profit group that includes health professionals, government representatives and consumers.
Dr Weekes said another problem was incorrect storage, such as people keeping medicines in bathrooms that were too humid and other areas of the house that were too hot.
Aged care pharmacist Rohan Elliott, who will address a public forum on medicines and the elderly tomorrow, said research showed about 14 per cent of elderly people kept their prescription drugs in containers other than their original packaging.
Most containers were not marked with details of their contents, and some even contained more than one type of medication.
Mr Elliott said surveys also showed up to one in five elderly people had shared their medication with another person.
Dr Weekes said even sharing non-prescription medications could be risky, because people might not have exactly the same conditions or the medication might react with other drugs they were taking.
"They think, 'My neighbour has used this cream for their arthritis, maybe I should try it'," she said.
"By all means, go to your doctor or pharmacist and say, 'I know this cream is really good, but do you think it will work for me?' "
Dr Weekes said that with almost 200 million prescriptions dispensed each year in Australia, and many people taking more than one medication at a time, remembering when and what to take could be challenging.
"We all forget to take our medicine sometimes," she said.
"You should try to put systems in place in your life to help you remember, so you always take it with something you do every day."
Dr Weekes said writing and prominently displaying a list, which included the drug's name, dose, time it should be taken and reason it was being taken, was a good way to prompt the memory.
Mr Elliott said his research showed about two-thirds of people aged over 60 used at least four medicines.
He said older patients were also big users of complementary and alternative medicines, led by vitamins and minerals, and followed by herbal and natural medicines.
"The potential for adverse interactions and side effects because of the number of medications being used is therefore enormous," Mr Elliott said.
Dr Weekes said it was vital carers also developed a better understanding of medicines, because they were often the ones administering them.
She said advice could be sought from a GP, pharmacist or the Medicines Line on 1300 888 763.
THE free public forum on medicines and the elderly is on at the Melbourne Exhibition Centre, 1.30pm, tomorrow. Call 5995 4599 for more details.
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,22296097-24331,00.html
Kamahl Cogdon
August 24, 2007 12:00am
MEDICINE mishaps land more than 140,000 Australians in hospital every year.
Older people, the biggest users of medicines, are often the victims.
Now pharmacists and other health professionals are joining forces to raise awareness about when and how to use medicines safely.
National Prescribing Service chief executive Dr Lynn Weekes said that while medicines sometimes had unexpected side effects, most problems were preventable.
She said one of the most common mistakes people made was not understanding their medication.
"The one thing everybody could do better is know their medicine," Dr Weekes said. "Know not just the brand name, but the active ingredients in the medicine."
She said this helped identify any potential harmful interactions between different medications a person might be taking, including prescription drugs, over-the-counter remedies, herbal medications and vitamins.
This is the major focus of the Get to Know Your Medicines public awareness campaign, launched this month by the NPS, a non-profit group that includes health professionals, government representatives and consumers.
Dr Weekes said another problem was incorrect storage, such as people keeping medicines in bathrooms that were too humid and other areas of the house that were too hot.
Aged care pharmacist Rohan Elliott, who will address a public forum on medicines and the elderly tomorrow, said research showed about 14 per cent of elderly people kept their prescription drugs in containers other than their original packaging.
Most containers were not marked with details of their contents, and some even contained more than one type of medication.
Mr Elliott said surveys also showed up to one in five elderly people had shared their medication with another person.
Dr Weekes said even sharing non-prescription medications could be risky, because people might not have exactly the same conditions or the medication might react with other drugs they were taking.
"They think, 'My neighbour has used this cream for their arthritis, maybe I should try it'," she said.
"By all means, go to your doctor or pharmacist and say, 'I know this cream is really good, but do you think it will work for me?' "
Dr Weekes said that with almost 200 million prescriptions dispensed each year in Australia, and many people taking more than one medication at a time, remembering when and what to take could be challenging.
"We all forget to take our medicine sometimes," she said.
"You should try to put systems in place in your life to help you remember, so you always take it with something you do every day."
Dr Weekes said writing and prominently displaying a list, which included the drug's name, dose, time it should be taken and reason it was being taken, was a good way to prompt the memory.
Mr Elliott said his research showed about two-thirds of people aged over 60 used at least four medicines.
He said older patients were also big users of complementary and alternative medicines, led by vitamins and minerals, and followed by herbal and natural medicines.
"The potential for adverse interactions and side effects because of the number of medications being used is therefore enormous," Mr Elliott said.
Dr Weekes said it was vital carers also developed a better understanding of medicines, because they were often the ones administering them.
She said advice could be sought from a GP, pharmacist or the Medicines Line on 1300 888 763.
THE free public forum on medicines and the elderly is on at the Melbourne Exhibition Centre, 1.30pm, tomorrow. Call 5995 4599 for more details.
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,22296097-24331,00.html