MANY CANADIANS AREN’T TAKING THEIR PRESCRIPTIONS AS PRESCRIBED
BUT PHARMACIES CAN HELP
When preventing or overcoming an illness, medication is often a needed step in improving the quality of someone’s life and sometimes even saving it. However, the Canadian Society of Hospital Pharmacists reports that, after six months, only half of Canadians continue to take their medications as prescribed.
“The statistics on medication adherence are alarming,” says Mary Kelly, Chief Pharmacy Officer with Rexall Pharmacy Group Ltd. “Unfortunately, there are still too many patients who don’t fill their prescriptions. Those who do, for a variety of reasons stop taking their medications after 6 months.”
There’s also a huge cost associated with medication non-adherence. Each year, it’s the cause of 10 per cent of all hospital admissions, 23 per cent of all nursing home admissions, and one-quarter of hospital admissions for the elderly. The Canadian Society of Hospital Pharmacists estimates that it adds between $7 billion and $9 billion annually to the cost of Canadian healthcare.
“As the primary point-of-contact between patients and their medications, pharmacists can help their patients stick to their treatment plan,” says Kelly.
Here are four ways your pharmacy can help you be more mindful of prescriptions:
AUTOMATE
See if your pharmacy offers to automatically refill prescriptions and remind you when they’re ready for pickup. Rexall offers Auto Refill, a free service that automatically refills medications and alerts customers by email, text message or phone.
“If you run to the end of your refills, we can contact your doctor to renew the prescription,” says Kelly. “In certain situations, the pharmacist can extend a renewal to ensure continuity of care.”
DEMYSTIFY
It’s a good idea to speak with your pharmacist if you are taking multiple medications.
Rexall’s approach to helping patients taking three or more medications at the same time is MedsCheck. It’s a one-on-one service in which you can review your medications annually with the pharmacist to make sure they’re compatible and help you reach your health goals. At the same time, you can clear up questions about the medications you’re taking and how to take them.
ORGANIZE
It’s not always easy to stay on track when you’re taking several medications a day, all on a different schedule. Check with your pharmacy to see if they can help organize your medications in a way that makes it easier to remember what you’ve taken and still need to take each day.
“Our approach to organizing is called MedOrganizer,” says Kelly. “The pharmacist simply places all medications in a tamper-resistant blister pack that tells you when to take your next medication. There’s no confusion about whether you’ve taken any medication, because you’ll see unused doses inside the blister pack. Better still, if you need to take nonprescription items, such as vitamin supplements, your pharmacist can incorporate them into the same blister pack.”
SYNCHRONIZE
Taking multiple chronic medications can result in numerous visits to the pharmacy every month, just to pick up refills. Ask your pharmacy to help synchronize your prescriptions to minimize the number of times you have to pick up your medications.
At Rexall, OneStopMeds will reduce the number of trips to the pharmacy, and ensures you can pick-up all of your medications in one visit. It also enables pharmacists to speak with their patients about their overall health and the medications they are taking.
One other reason often cited for not complying with medications requirements is the cost of the medication itself.
“We’re also trying to help with that,” says Kelly. “At our Ottawa pharmacies, Rexall will take up to $10 off all Ontario Drug Benefit-eligible prescriptions from August 1 to September 15, 2017.”
There’s little good that can come of not taking a prescription. But following a treatment plan that includes taking medication as prescribed will have a positive impact on a person’s overall health and wellness. Talk to your pharmacist about ways to help ensure you and your loved ones are taking medications safely and correctly.