Guest Columnist . . .

Patricia A. Shevlin, MD

At the beginning of every year, most of us try to get organized, make a few resolutions about what we could do better and start new prescription drug plans. One area that is frequently neglected is the medication list.  In an effort to cut down on medication errors, I offer my recommendations to patients about their medications.

1. Keep an updated list of your medications with you. Include the prescription and the non-prescription medications. Before your appointments, review the list by comparing it to the bottles that you have at home. If there is a discrepancy, you should adjust your list. If there is an error or suspected error you will be able to get it corrected by calling the office of the physician who wrote the prescription, or ask at the office visit.  At the appointment or when you get home, add any new prescriptions to your list.
2. Include on the medication list the reason for the medicine, such as diabetes or blood pressure. I think this makes it easier to organize your medications and to realize what to expect if you miss a pill or run out of a medication.
3. To prevent running out of a medication, I strongly recommend a weekly pill container. When you fill this every Saturday or Sunday, you will know in advance when you need to call for refills. No matter how efficient an office or pharmacy is, delays can occur due to electronic transmission errors, fax machine downtime etc.  The sooner you can request a refill, (within the requirements of your insurance company), the better.
4. The weekly medication container is NOT an indication of memory impairment.  Most of us are busy and when we have medications we take at the same time day after day, it is easy to think you have taken a medication when you have not. I remind patients all the time that birth control pills have come in packages with the day of the week written on them for this exact reason. It’s not a problem just for the seniors.
5. Keep the prescription and non prescription medications that you take on an as needed basis separate from the daily medications. The names should be on a separate list or the back of the daily list. The bottles should be in a separate bag. This cuts down on confusion, especially when filling the weekly pill container. It also helps a family member who may be helping you when you are sick and need one of those medications.

You may be asking yourself “Why do I need to do all of this? My doctor has a record of my medications.” First of all, you are the patient and you are responsible for what goes in your body. In addition to your health, it’s also your money that’s at stake here.  Most of us have multiple doctors and all of our medicines are not written in one place. Bringing your list should encourage your physicians to put the entire list into their records. Finally, many patients use multiple drugstores. There are mail order options for daily medications, local drugstores for acute medications and $4 options for some medications.  The possibilities for confusion are endless.  Everybody needs a reliable system.

Dr. Shevlin is a partner in Asheboro Family Physicians of North Carolina, PA