‘Medicines should be taken as prescribed’
MIRI: We have often heard from the elderly, my parents included, that taking too much medicine will harm our health and even worst, damage the kidney.
Hence, one of the things one can see at my parents’ house is piles of unused/unfinished medication prescribed by doctors and those bought from pharmacies.
It had, in a way, become the source for my headache because not only they keep complaining of weak body and undiminished sickness, it means endless trips visiting the doctor.
It was not surprising, when I spoke to people around me, they too shared that they have the same issue with their family members which leads to a huge problem – wastage of drugs.
Miri Hospital physician Datuk Dr Fam Tem Lom, in an interview with The Borneo Post, said one of the factors contributing to drug wastage is that patients do not understand why they were prescribed with the amount of medication and why it is equally important to complete the medication as suggested by the doctor.
“First of all, when the patient has, for example, high blood pressure, the doctor may have suggested the patient to take a certain dosage of medication in a day. Many a times, they worry they consume too much medicine and the impact it may cause to their body. They simply take the matter into their hands by cutting down the medication.
“What they do not realise is that they could be causing much more damage to their body. When they cut down the medication intake from the suggested dosage, their blood pressure is not controlled. They will have to seek their doctor’s advice in the next consultation.
“Under such circumstances, the doctor may have to either, prescribe the same medication at higher dosage or prescribe another type of medicine. Either way, it is not a good sign for the patient, it actually causes burden to their body with more medicines,” pointed out Dr Fam.
Communication between patient and doctor/pharmacist, he stressed, is vital to enable the patient understand the reason for the dosage prescribed, and the benefit of them completing the whole course of medication supply as suggested.
“A good communication between patient and doctor/pharmacist could also build trust and the patient could accept the advice and oblige to the suggestion offered by the professional.”
Another factor, according to Dr Fam, would be the unsuitability of medication that causes allergy or other side effects to the patient upon consumption.
“In such case, they are usually advised to return the medicines to the hospital and thereafter, the returned medication will be handled accordingly,” Dr Fam elaborated.
To reduce wastage, the subscription of medication has been changed from three to six months to monthly supply, which means the patient is required to complete their one-month medication before getting the next prescription.
First of all, when the patient has, for example, high blood pressure, the doctor may have suggested the patient to take a certain dosage of medication in a day. Many a times, they worry they consume too much medicine and the impact it may cause to their body. They simply take the matter into their hands by cutting down the medication.
“Some find it helps them to keep track of their medication, some are drawn back by the fuss of travelling to hospital every other month. But rest assured, our pharmacy in Miri Hospital is now open in the evening until 9pm so that outpatients can avoid the traffic congestion,” said Dr Fam.
Meanwhile, The Borneo Post approached a pharmacist at Miri Polyclinic on the monthly medication supply policy, to understand how it could reduce wastage.
“Since the implementation of monthly supply, there is possibility that we have observed about 20 to 30 per cent reduction in drug wastage which is great news to us. This means that it could progress to a better awareness among the public,” said the pharmacist who chose to be unnamed.
The progress, she added, is important because it is almost impossible to recycle the medication that had been supplied to customers.
“The ideal way to store medicine, whether it is in tablet or fluid form, is to keep it in cool or airconditioned room or refrigerator. If they are exposed in warm environment, despite their seal still intact, the medicine could be spoilt and can cause health hazard,” she pointed out.
Different measures, she revealed, had been implemented for the public’s convenience, including delivering the medicine to the customer’s doorstep, locker system, and SMS notification system.
For courier service, customers will need to pay a small amount which is imposed by Poslaju and their medicines will be delivered to their doorstep without the fuss of traffic congestion and long queue.
“The locker system is a much more convenient way for customers to obtain their medicine supply. At the moment, we have lockers set up in Taman Tunku, UTC Miri and Miri Polyclinic, thanks to Miri Chinese Charitable Trust Board. Each customer will be given a key to the locker, and after the medicine supply is placed in the customer’s locker, they will be informed and collection period is within a week.”
In case the customer may have forgotten to collect the medicine after the period, the medicine will be returned to the clinic.
“We are thankful for the support from the trust board for the facility. We also hope more organisations could lend a helping hand in helping us set up more lockers around Miri for the public’s convenience.”
Datuk Dr Fam Tem Lom, Miri Hospital physician
Short-messaging system to make arrangement with government pharmacy is another great way for customers to avoid the long queue, she said.
“They only need to pre-register their details with the pharmacy and they will be given a customised code. Days before their supply collection date, they can notify the pharmacy requesting to arrange to obtain the medication supply.”
The pharmacist reminded the public not to dump unused medicine into rubbish bins or wash it down the drain as it could cause hazard to the environment.
“People have a habit or washing the unused medicine down the drain.
“However, what they may not realise is that after going down the drain, the medicine will either be washed into the river before going into the sea where it affects the marine life or into the water treatment plant where it could be go back into our water pipe.
“The proper way of disposing unused medicine is to return it to the government pharmacy where it will be handled appropriately,” she said before concluding the interview.