Tips for Safely Keeping Track of Multiple Medications

Polypharmacy is the use of multiple medications by a patient and is often experienced by seniors. While taking multiple medications may be absolutely necessary for managing chronic diseases and conditions, keeping track of doses and various medication schedules can become overwhelming.

And on top of this, whether it’s over-the-counter supplements, prescriptions and herbal medications, the more medications a person is taking, the more likely they can experience drug interactions and side effects, which punctuates the importance of understanding the medications you or a loved one is taking.

4 Questions to Ask to Avoid the Dangers of Polypharmacy

1) What all is my parent taking and why?

Again, taking multiple medications is sometimes necessary and isn’t always dangerous, but when this is the case, here are several questions to ask your doctor, according to AgingCare.com:

4) Are any symptoms or conditions he or she is having potentially due to the medications themselves?

2) How necessary is each medication? Can any be removed?

3) Are any medications interacting with each other in a negative way?

You may have to schedule an appointment solely for these questions.

• Have the medication list ready, updated and accurate before the appointment.

• In order to get the correct answers, you must always carry an accurate list of medications you are taking. • For an elderly patient with memory issues, a family member will have to create the list.

Find Quality Care Now Locate a BrightStar Near You!

Find a location in Canada

Find a location in the US