Ellen Campbell -Grizzle
EVERYONE CAN maximise the return on medication spending. In so doing, attention to safety and effectiveness is first principle. Here are 10 simple and solid tips to assist you during the Yuletide period:
1 - Ensure that your name, age and address are correctly written on your prescription. Know the name of your doctor. This may save you a telephone call, delay or return visit to the prescriber. Insurance claims cannot be submitted on your behalf without this information.
2 - Know your pharmacist. However, if you are unsure, you should ask "May I see the pharmacist, please?" It is in your interest to develop this habit.
3 - Answer the questions that your pharmacists must ask. You compromise your own care if you do not respond accurately. Confirmation of your name, age and address is a strong indication that the script was written for you. Also, this information will assist the pharmacist to contact you if the need arises. Documentation and evaluation of your medication history reduce the possibility of drug mishaps.
4 - Talk to your pharmacist about the price of your medication. There may be a savings deal on your brand or an appropriate cost-saving generic. Jamaican law allows pharmacists to provide generic alternatives so long as you agree, and the prescriber has not restricted the option to brand name only.
5 - Switching between brands and generics of the same drug is not always straightforward. Your prescriber and pharmacist are well placed to guide you on this matter.
6 - Take your medication as you agreed. This disciplined action on your part reduces the risk that your illness will get worse, and necessitate more expensive medication or a longer course of treatment.
7 - Store your medication as advised. Most medicines are temperature sensitive. Hot or cold temperature can reduce the effectiveness of a drug or cause it to break down into toxic compounds.
8 - All seniors or persons taking medication for chronic illnesses need to consult with the pharmacist before purchasing over-the-counter medicines. Several herbal and commonly-used cough and cold medications interact with drugs prescribed for such conditions as high blood pressure, diabetes, asthma and arthritis.
9 - Know the possible side effects of your medication. There are persons who, for example, develop excessive coughing when they take some medication for high blood pressure; many of them have wasted time and money buying medication for cough suppression. In this case, the best course of action is to return to your doctor for advice.
10 - Watch out for expiry dates! Do not purchase drugs that are too close to expiry, if you will not complete use before the expiry date.
ANSWER THE PHARMACIST
Jamaican pharmacists are concerned about the fact that several clients are refusing to answer questions related to medication use. Under the correct conditions, these questions can protect your best interests. Your pharmacist needs this information to provide proper guidance.
Consumers need to be wiser and more conscious about medication-related issues. Remember and practise these four golden rules of medicine safety:
Always get your medication from a registered pharmacy where there is a pharmacist available.
Never share your medication.
Take your medication as advised.
Call your pharmacist or prescriber to discuss adverse effects related to the taking of your medication.
Ellen Campbell-Grizzle, president, Caribbean Association of Pharmacists; director, Information and Research, National Council on Drug Abuse; email: yourhealth@gleanerjm.com.
