The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and participating local law enforcement are coordinating a nationwide drug “take-back” day on April 26th.åÊ This one-day event will provide residents with no cost anonymous collection of unwanted and expired medicines. Click here to find a DEA collection site near you. It’s a great time...
Tag: medication management
NCOA Offer Medication Mgt Tips (VIDEO)
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NCOA Offer Medication Mgt Tips
Every year, one in three adults aged 65+ has one or more harmful reactions to a medication, according to the American Geriatrics Society.Here are 6 tips to keep in mind to manage medication wisely to stay healthy and safe. 1. Be informed about all the medications youÛªre taking. All drugs...
Boomers Skipping Meds
Investment News Daily reports that the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) found that people over nearly a quarter of individuals above age 50 were trimming costs by: making changes to their prescription medication switching to generic drugs obtaining free samplesæ stop taking their medication entirely.æ About one in five of...
1.1 Million 50+ Taken to ED for Adverse Medication Reactions
The Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) is a public health surveillance system that monitors drug-related emergency department (ED) visits in the United States. Their latest report in February focused on Emergency Department visits that involve adverse reactions to medications among older adults in 2008. In 2008, an estimated 1.1 million...
Third of Home Care Staff Make Medication Errors – What You Can Do
A Northwestern University study has shown that more than one-third of paid home care staff had difficulty reading and understanding health-related information and directions. Sixty percent made errors when sorting medications into pillboxes. Nearly 100 paid, non-family caregivers were recruited in the Chicago area and their health literacy levels and...
Prescription Drug Use on the Rise
Nearly 90% of older adults reported taking at least one prescription drug in the past month, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which noted that prescription drug use overall is on the rise. In the last decade, the number of Americans taking one...
Use Proper Dosing Instruments When Taking Medications
Koert van Ittersum, an assistant professor at Georgia Institute of Technology and Brian Wansink of Cornell University published a letter in the Jan. 5 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine citing new research that suggests that you should steer clear of using ordinary spoons when taking or giving liquid...
Nursing Homes Sometimes Wrongly Blamed in Medication Misuse
A recent article in the Chicago Tribune examines the roles physicians play in nursing home care, particularly when it comes to medication management. When physicians or psychiatrists prescribe a drug for a patient, facilities must administer it as long as the order is consistent with state and federal nursing home...