SAFELY MANAGE

multiple medications

(MCC) Individuals who are 60 and older are accustomed to making routine trips to the pharmacy to fill prescriptions. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that roughly 84 per cent of adults between the ages of 60 and 79 use one or more prescription medications.

Prescription medications prolong individuals’ lives and can make their daily lives more comfortable and manageable. As individuals age, their doctors may recommend various prescriptions, some of which they may need to take long-term. Managing multiple medications at once can be difficult, as it can be easy to lose track of which medications have been taken when individuals are prescribed more than one. In recognition of that difficulty, the U.S. National Institutes of Health offers the following tips to help individuals safely manage multiple medications.

• Maintain an updated list of all medications you take. The NIH notes a medication list should include both prescription and over-the-counter medications. OTC medicines include vitamins, supplements and herbal products.

• Share your medication list with family or close friends. A medication list should be accessible, and seniors can even share it with close family members, who can then advise medical professionals like EMTs, nurses and emergency room doctors which medicines you are taking in emergency situations when you may not be conscious.

• Routinely review your medicine list with health care providers and pharmacists. The NIH recommends individuals discuss their medicines with their physicians during each appointment. Ask if all medicines still need to be taken and if dosages should be changed. When visiting specialists, be sure to provide a list of all medications you are currently taking.

• Ask questions about newly prescribed medications. Drug interactions can be dangerous, so it’s important to ask if and how any newly prescribed medications may interact with drugs, vitamins or supplements you are already taking.

• Alert health care providers to any new side-effects. Immediately contact your physician if any new side-effects present. The NIH recommends individuals continue to take their medications unless their doctor says otherwise.

• Use a pill organizer. A pill organizer makes it easy to manage multiple medications and can help individuals remember which pills they have taken.

Millions of individuals 60 and older take more than one medicine each day. Some simple strategies can ensure seniors safely manage their medications.