The elderly need hired professionals to administer their medications

One of the most challenging and difficult parts of my professional day is trying to determine if my patients are actually taking their as prescribed. I ask my patients to bring their medications to each visit in the original pill bottles, and we count pills. I ask them to bring their medication lists as well, and we go through the time-consuming practice of reviewing each medication against the prescribing date and amount and reviewing whether the correct amount of medication has been taken and is left in the pill bottles. Many of our patients inadvertently make medication mistakes routinely. The toughest groups of patients to treat are elderly couples living independently with no local family member support and possessing a strong will for independence and privacy. Often one patient is moderately to severely cognitively impaired, and the other partner is nowhere near as sharp as they think they are. There are frequently out of state children who try to provide support by hiring someone to assist their parents. In most cases, mom and dad do not allow that hired person to work full time and terminate any strong willed but well-meaning caregiver who actually does what needs to be done. Continue reading ... Your patients are rating you online: How to respond. Manage your online reputation: A social media guide. Find out how.
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - Category: General Medicine Authors: Tags: Meds Geriatrics Source Type: blogs