Should patients receive the same information about medication that doctors get? YES!
The information that comes with the medication should be given to the patient. After all the patient is the one taking the medicine. The benefits and the risks should be readily available; however, this is very seldom the case. Most of the time the doctor has not read this information, and does not give it to the patient. There is usually a lot to read. There is so much to read that most drug companies use extremely small print on a few pages to tell about the drug. How many doctors or pharmacists even get to the last page of "patient counseling information"? If there is specific patient information, why is it at the end? Why is there information "for doctors only"? Why is the patient information so different from the doctor information?
Medication errors occur far too frequently to leave the patient out. Medication awareness for patients should be as important as diagnosis and treatment. Full disclosure of the good, bad and ugly effects of medication should be available to anyone who wants to know about it - especially the one taking it.
viernes, 22 de junio de 2007
lunes, 18 de junio de 2007
MEDICATION AWARENESS MONTH
We are mid way through Medication Awareness Month. Have you checked your medicines? See the blog for June 5th for details.
A word to medication producers...please improve packaging of medication. Blister packs are nice, convenient but can be difficult to open especially for arthritic hands.
A word to medication producers...please improve packaging of medication. Blister packs are nice, convenient but can be difficult to open especially for arthritic hands.
domingo, 10 de junio de 2007
EMAIL TO OPRAH
MS. WINFREY,
WWW.CODEBLUENOW.ORG. AMERICAN HEALTH CARE NEEDS ADVANCED, INTENSIVE RESUSCITATION.
YOUR INTERVIEW WITH MICHAEL MOORE AND HIS MOVIE "SICKO" REVEALED HOW "SICKO" AMERICAN HEALTH CARE REALLY IS. IT IS GOOD TO HEAR YOU BOTH SPEAK ABOUT JOINING EFFORTS IN A BIPARTISAN WAY WITH THE PEOPLE.
IN THE DEBATES, THE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES BARELY MENTIONED THE HEALTH CARE MALIGNANCY METASTASIZING THROUGHOUT THE HEALTH SYSTEM. SO SAD. MAYBE 2 MINUTES TOPS BETWEEN BOTH SIDES.
THANKS FOR DR. OZ! WE NEED MORE LIKE HIM.
BLESSINGS,
J RICHARDSON MD
WWW.CODEBLUENOW.ORG. AMERICAN HEALTH CARE NEEDS ADVANCED, INTENSIVE RESUSCITATION.
YOUR INTERVIEW WITH MICHAEL MOORE AND HIS MOVIE "SICKO" REVEALED HOW "SICKO" AMERICAN HEALTH CARE REALLY IS. IT IS GOOD TO HEAR YOU BOTH SPEAK ABOUT JOINING EFFORTS IN A BIPARTISAN WAY WITH THE PEOPLE.
IN THE DEBATES, THE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES BARELY MENTIONED THE HEALTH CARE MALIGNANCY METASTASIZING THROUGHOUT THE HEALTH SYSTEM. SO SAD. MAYBE 2 MINUTES TOPS BETWEEN BOTH SIDES.
THANKS FOR DR. OZ! WE NEED MORE LIKE HIM.
BLESSINGS,
J RICHARDSON MD
jueves, 7 de junio de 2007
COMMUNICATION GAP
Look how long it took health officials to find a man with infectious extreme drug resistant (XDR) tuberculosis (TB) after “talking” with him about his condition. Did they tell him that he was and that he could not travel? In the taped (taped by his father) conversation with the doctor, the doctor said, “There is no reason for you to be sequestered”. The letter telling him he was infectious and not to travel arrived after he left the country. Did anyone try to call him, email him, text him or his immediate family?
Communication and comprehension are not the only issues here. Look how long it took to get to this point. The gentleman was alerted that he may have a severe form of TB back in April. It is now June. There is some hesitancy here. He was initially diagnosed, according to his TV interview with “The King”, Larry King, that he was diagnosed with TB over a year ago. Treatment until May had been stable, uneventful. Now he faces long term treatment, and possibly part of his lung may have to be removed.
Communication is the number one item that patients say hinder their health care. They rarely get to tell their whole story before the doctor interrupts. It gets to a point where you don’t understand what your health providers are saying, and you just do what you think they told you. Or do you?
If the “big dogs” like the CDC and health departments have problems in talking to patients so that they understand, where does that leave the rest of us?
Communication is the fifth vital sign (the others are blood pressure, temperature, pulse rate, respirations). Understanding what is said is part of this. Talk much. Listen more. Ask to repeat. Ask questions. Write it down. Or tape it.
Communication and comprehension are not the only issues here. Look how long it took to get to this point. The gentleman was alerted that he may have a severe form of TB back in April. It is now June. There is some hesitancy here. He was initially diagnosed, according to his TV interview with “The King”, Larry King, that he was diagnosed with TB over a year ago. Treatment until May had been stable, uneventful. Now he faces long term treatment, and possibly part of his lung may have to be removed.
Communication is the number one item that patients say hinder their health care. They rarely get to tell their whole story before the doctor interrupts. It gets to a point where you don’t understand what your health providers are saying, and you just do what you think they told you. Or do you?
If the “big dogs” like the CDC and health departments have problems in talking to patients so that they understand, where does that leave the rest of us?
Communication is the fifth vital sign (the others are blood pressure, temperature, pulse rate, respirations). Understanding what is said is part of this. Talk much. Listen more. Ask to repeat. Ask questions. Write it down. Or tape it.
martes, 5 de junio de 2007
MEDICATION AWARENESS MONTH
June is officially declared Medication Awareness Month(MAM).
Check ALL the medication you take. This includes prescription,non-prescription/ over the counter, herbals, supplements, vitamins, foods with supplements (like calcium milligrams in a cup of juice). This is important as you may be taking a calcium supplement and/ or Tums. That could add up to more calcium than is recommended. One risk of too much calcium is a kidney stone.
Check the medication expiration dates. Throw out the expired ones.
Keep medication in a safe place. This means out of the reach of children, and adults that are unable to administer their own medicine.
When starting a new medication, be sure you have read up on it. Ask your doctor about it. Since medication side effect lists tend to be quite lengthy, many doctors do not have the time to discuss them with you. Be sure to get a copy and read it yourself. Ask your doctor or pharmacist as well as looking it up in the library or on the Internet. Call the company that makes the medicine.
This is just a few things to consider with taking medication. Later in the blog, pharmacy expert Ronald Kaler will discuss more medication awareness tips.
Check ALL the medication you take. This includes prescription,non-prescription/ over the counter, herbals, supplements, vitamins, foods with supplements (like calcium milligrams in a cup of juice). This is important as you may be taking a calcium supplement and/ or Tums. That could add up to more calcium than is recommended. One risk of too much calcium is a kidney stone.
Check the medication expiration dates. Throw out the expired ones.
Keep medication in a safe place. This means out of the reach of children, and adults that are unable to administer their own medicine.
When starting a new medication, be sure you have read up on it. Ask your doctor about it. Since medication side effect lists tend to be quite lengthy, many doctors do not have the time to discuss them with you. Be sure to get a copy and read it yourself. Ask your doctor or pharmacist as well as looking it up in the library or on the Internet. Call the company that makes the medicine.
This is just a few things to consider with taking medication. Later in the blog, pharmacy expert Ronald Kaler will discuss more medication awareness tips.
VOTE FOR HEALTHCARE
Sunday's Democratic presidential debate revealed little about the health care crisis in America. The candidates seem to focus on issues important to them while commenting on the present president's actions quite contrarily. The war in Iraq took precedence over all followed by Iraq's weaponization and terrorism. Immigration was discussed. Many homeland issues were briefly touched on, but not emphasized.
Where is the love for the people of America? Shouldn't more attention be focused on health care, jobs, wages, housing, homeland security, etc? The issues discussed during the debate missed the mark. There must be more focus on the American people!
Great health is true wealth. It should be a primary concern for our next president. To keep our nation wealthy, we must be healthy. For the record, one candidate, Governor Bill Richardson, had responses for many of the health care concerns America faces.
This is evident on his website. There was a report entitled "The Candidates Side-by-side on Health Care". Many issues were left blank by the other candidates. Governor Richardson left no blank spaces. He has an "innovative national health care plan" (as does Senator Obama, 15 pages while Senator Kucinich lists a universal health care plan as the top issue). The other candidates had a page or two on health care.
As election time draws closer, hopefully health issues will be number one on every one's list. Great health, true wealth?
Where is the love for the people of America? Shouldn't more attention be focused on health care, jobs, wages, housing, homeland security, etc? The issues discussed during the debate missed the mark. There must be more focus on the American people!
Great health is true wealth. It should be a primary concern for our next president. To keep our nation wealthy, we must be healthy. For the record, one candidate, Governor Bill Richardson, had responses for many of the health care concerns America faces.
This is evident on his website. There was a report entitled "The Candidates Side-by-side on Health Care". Many issues were left blank by the other candidates. Governor Richardson left no blank spaces. He has an "innovative national health care plan" (as does Senator Obama, 15 pages while Senator Kucinich lists a universal health care plan as the top issue). The other candidates had a page or two on health care.
As election time draws closer, hopefully health issues will be number one on every one's list. Great health, true wealth?
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