Cost and disrupted routines threaten medication safety at Christmas

The Christmas holiday period can present as a particularly challenging time for medication adherence. In addition to the usual factors contributing to poor adherence — cost, side effects, not understanding why the medication is necessary and being overwhelmed by too many medications — during the holidays, they are joined by two other causes.

One is the disruption to routine due to the distraction and abundance of social events, making it hard to remember if medication has been taken. Another is that some consciously choose not to fill their prescriptions during Christmas holidays so that they’ll have extra money to buy gifts for loved ones.

“The festive season and holidays can be a time when it is easy to lose track of normal daily schedules. Everyone wants to relax and have a good time but things don’t always go according to plan, especially when daily medication routines are interrupted,” Webstercare Founder and Managing Director Gerard Stevens AM said.

“That’s why it’s important to plan ahead and take steps to ensure that medication problems don’t get in the way of enjoying this important time of the year.”

Holiday safety help from pharmacists

“Safe medications make safe holidays. Hopefully many of us will be able to get away this year and catch up with family and friends for Christmas and the New Year. But what happens if you run out of your medications or lose them?” Stevens asked.

“It can be critical that you don’t miss a dose. Being able to explain exactly what you take and what dose is another consideration. It’s important to be prepared,” he warned.

Stevens said pharmacists can take some steps to help minimise the chance of medication misadventure while customers are away from home, giving them and their family peace of mind:

1. Offer a Webster-pak for the duration of the holiday. This will ensure all medications prescribed are available for the duration of the trip and act as a reminder to take the recommended doses.

2. Suggest carrying a PocketProfile Medicines List in a wallet or purse.

People can find it difficult to remember and explain exactly what medications and doses they take, especially with multiple medications.

“Around one in five people aged 70 or older are on four or more medications, which they truly need. It can be difficult to remember all of the names and correct dosages,” Stevens explained. “So having an up-to-date list can be very useful.”

One solution is Webstercare’s PocketProfile Medicines List, which can be simply printed via the Webster-pak Medication Management Software (MMS). It contains a person’s entire medication profile, including images of medications, and neatly folds down to the size of a credit card, so it’s easy to keep in a purse or wallet. Whenever a medication changes, the pharmacist can issue an updated PocketProfile.

“In an age where things are increasingly digital, users of the PocketProfile don’t need the latest gadgets, apps and electronic devices — it won’t run out of charge and it won’t shut down,” Stevens said.

The PocketProfile also contains the person’s home pharmacy and phone number, enabling a pharmacist at a holiday destination to simply ring the home pharmacy to confirm the medications that were prescribed, before issuing emergency replacements to last the remainder of the holiday.

“It is particularly helpful in emergency situations. Medical staff can immediately see a patient’s medications and any other medical concerns, including ‘in case of emergency’ contact details,” Stevens said.

3. Ask customers if they are going away this Christmas.

“All pharmacies have close relationships with their regular customers and learn indirectly whether they leave home for a Christmas holiday. Simply asking your staff to ask the question — ‘Are you going away on holidays this Christmas?’ — can start a discussion that leads to improved health [and] safety of many customers, especially those taking multiple medications. If medications are safely and securely packed into a Webster-pak there is much less risk of missing doses. This is especially important for people on important medication.

“Consider speaking to them [customers] about the Pharmacist Shared Medicines List, a consolidated list of medicines and uploaded to the customer’s My Health Record.”

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