Silver Age Health | Guide to safe medication use for the elderly

As the trend of population aging intensifies, the health problems of the elderly are receiving more and more attention. Among the health problems, safe medication is an important issue facing the elderly. This article will provide a guide for safe medication for the elderly from the aspects of physiological characteristics of the elderly, common misunderstandings about medication, and principles of safe medication.

Physiological characteristics of the elderly: The body functions of the elderly gradually decline, their metabolism slows down, and their ability to absorb, metabolize and excrete drugs is relatively weak. Therefore, when choosing drugs, the elderly should fully consider these characteristics and avoid using drugs that are not suitable for them.

In addition, the elderly often suffer from a variety of chronic diseases, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, etc., and need to take medication for a long time to control their condition. Therefore, understanding your own physical condition and the disease you suffer from, and choosing the right medication for yourself is the basis for the elderly to use medication safely.

▏Pay attention to the psychology of medication use in the elderly

First, fear of drugs is common among the elderly. As they age, they tend to be cautious about unknown things, especially drugs. They worry that drugs will have side effects or even endanger their lives. This fear often comes from misunderstandings about drugs or from unpleasant experiences with drugs. Therefore, we need to help the elderly correctly understand drugs, understand the properties and effects of drugs, and eliminate their fear through popular science education and other means.

Secondly, the elderly are more dependent on drugs. Due to some chronic diseases, they need to take drugs for a long time to maintain the basic functions of the body. However, long-term use of drugs can easily lead to their dependence on drugs, thus affecting their quality of life. Therefore, we need to guide the elderly to correctly view the role of drugs, encourage them to use drugs rationally, and gradually reduce their dependence on drugs.

In addition, the elderly also have psychological problems such as anxiety and depression during medication. Due to the distress of the disease and the increase in life pressure, they are prone to negative emotions. This emotion will affect the effect of their medication and the quality of life. Therefore, we need to pay attention to the mental health of the elderly, provide psychological support and care, help them overcome negative emotions, and better cope with the disease and life pressure.

▏There are rules for taking medicines at the right time, and there are principles for making up for missed doses

Due to memory loss, slow reaction and other reasons, the elderly are prone to forget to take medicine on time, resulting in missed doses. Therefore, the elderly should pay attention to the time of taking medicine, and there are also principles for missing doses. First of all, the time of taking medicine for the elderly should be selected according to the condition and the nature of the medicine. Generally speaking, morning and evening are the best time to take medicine, because these two time periods are when the human body's metabolism is most active, which is conducive to the absorption and function of the medicine. In addition, some chronic disease medicines that need to be taken for a long time, such as antihypertensive drugs and hypoglycemic drugs, should also be taken on time to maintain a stable blood drug concentration and avoid fluctuations in the condition. For some drugs that need to be taken before bed, such as sedatives and hypnotics, they should also be taken on time according to the doctor's advice to avoid affecting the quality of sleep.

Secondly, elderly people should take remedial measures according to the specific situation after missing medication. However, they should pay attention to the body's reaction and seek medical attention in time if they feel unwell. It should be noted that if the missed medication is some special medication, such as anticoagulants, hypoglycemic drugs, etc., you should consult a doctor or pharmacist for advice to avoid affecting the treatment effect or causing adverse reactions.

In addition, the elderly should develop good medication habits and avoid stopping medication or changing dosages at will. During medication, they should pay attention to their body reactions and seek medical attention in time if they feel unwell. At the same time, the elderly should strengthen their self-care awareness, eat a reasonable diet, exercise appropriately, and maintain a happy mood, so as to improve their physical fitness and immunity and reduce the risk of disease.

What should I do if I find I have missed a dose of medication?

The general principle is the "1/2 make-up principle": if you find that the missed dose is within 1/2 of the interval between two doses, take the original dose immediately, and the next dose should be taken at the original time; if you find that the missed dose has exceeded 1/2 of the interval between two doses, you generally do not need to take a make-up dose.

Remember that without professional guidance from medical staff, you should not take a double dose at once, as this will increase adverse drug reactions and even cause drug poisoning. When taking antihypertensive and hypoglycemic drugs, in addition to following the general principles of taking drugs, you should also pay attention to changes in blood sugar and blood pressure. If there are large fluctuations, you should take the drug immediately and postpone the next dose.

▏Countermeasures for adverse reactions after medication

Side effects of drugs are inevitable, especially for the elderly, who often suffer from multiple chronic diseases and need to take multiple medications. The following are some common adverse reactions to chronic disease drugs and their coping strategies.

1. Hypoglycemia: This is a common adverse reaction in elderly patients with chronic diseases who take hypoglycemic drugs. Countermeasures: You can always put a piece of candy or chocolate in your pocket. When you have symptoms of hypoglycemia such as excessive sweating, dizziness, weakness, and pale face, you can give yourself some sugar.

2. Gastrointestinal reactions such as nausea and vomiting may occur when taking antihypertensive drugs. Countermeasures: If the symptoms are mild, they can be improved by a proper diet and drinking more water to replenish water; if the symptoms are severe or persist, seek medical attention immediately.

3. Long-term use of aspirin may cause gastrointestinal bleeding. Countermeasures: Pay attention to whether there are ecchymosis, bleeding gums, dark stools, etc. If you have related symptoms, you should seek medical attention in time.

It is very important to follow the doctor's instructions when taking medication. Do not increase, decrease, or stop taking medication without permission. The medication situation of patients with multiple chronic diseases is complex and changeable, and their condition changes greatly. In addition, many patients do not have the professional knowledge of doctors. If you increase, decrease, or stop taking medication without permission, it may affect the efficacy of the treatment plan and even endanger your health. Therefore, you must follow the doctor's instructions when taking medication. This is an important guarantee for being responsible for your own health.

Finally, studies have shown that for patients with multiple chronic diseases, it is very helpful to understand their own conditions and medication knowledge from multiple aspects, and to consult doctors or professionals for advice when necessary, in order to control and treat the disease. Therefore, we need to be vigilant at all times and never take it lightly.

▏If a new drug is added, attention should be paid to the reaction between the new drug and other drugs

Drug interactions are complex effects that may occur when two or more drugs are used simultaneously or in the short term. These effects may enhance the effect of the drug and reduce side effects, or they may weaken the effect of the drug or produce unexpected side effects. Doctors and pharmacists have considered and evaluated these factors in the patient's previous medication regimen, so there are basically no drug interactions that seriously endanger the patient's health.

However, in daily life, due to a cold or sudden illness, patients may need to add new drugs for treatment. At this time, special attention should be paid to drug interactions to prevent adverse reactions and harm to the patient's health. For patients with chronic diseases, if new drugs are needed, they must seek the guidance of doctors and the assistance of pharmacists to adjust the medication plan. Do not add drugs at will.

At the same time, patients need to tell their doctors the detailed information of the drugs they take on a daily basis when they seek medical treatment, so that doctors can promptly detect possible interactions and avoid adverse reactions between drugs. The purpose of this is to ensure the safety and health of each patient's medication and avoid unnecessary risks caused by drug interactions.

▏Properly store medications

The storage of medicines does require special attention. The storage method will be listed in detail on the drug instructions, and the storage conditions cover aspects such as storage temperature and whether it needs to be protected from light. Regarding storage temperature, we need to pay attention to four common terms: room temperature, cold place, cool place, and cool dark place. The temperature ranges they represent are slightly different and need to be clearly understood. At the same time, storage methods that require packaging in opaque containers, such as brown containers or colorless, transparent, or translucent containers wrapped in black paper, also need attention.

After receiving the medicine, we should carefully read the storage method indicated on the instructions and follow the instructions. In addition, we should also pay attention to the special instructions of doctors and pharmacists. For example, insulin should be stored in the refrigerator before opening, and should be stored at room temperature after opening. For elderly patients with chronic diseases, who need to take many kinds of medicines for a long time, it is very necessary to develop a good habit of regularly organizing the medicine box.

It is recommended to sort out the medicine every 4 weeks, and the longest interval is not recommended to exceed 3 months. This can avoid taking expired and spoiled medicines, which will affect the efficacy and even endanger your health. If the medicine is past its expiration date, its effectiveness and safety cannot be guaranteed, and it is absolutely not to be taken.

▏Common Misunderstandings about Medication

1. Buying medicines on your own

Some elderly people go to pharmacies to buy medicines for convenience. However, medicines purchased by themselves may have safety risks, such as unknown drug ingredients and unclear drug effects. Therefore, the elderly should buy medicines through formal channels and follow the doctor's advice.

2. Increase or decrease drug dosage at will

Some elderly people believe that the larger the dose of a drug, the better the effect. Randomly increasing or decreasing the dose of a drug may lead to overdose or underdose, affecting the therapeutic effect. Therefore, you should take the drug on time and in the right amount according to the doctor's advice.

3. Taking multiple drugs at the same time

Some elderly people take multiple drugs at the same time in pursuit of therapeutic effects. However, taking multiple drugs at the same time may cause interactions, affect the efficacy of the drugs, or even cause adverse reactions. Therefore, you should consult a doctor and reasonably match the drugs according to the doctor's advice.

▏Principles of safe medication

1. Follow your doctor’s advice

The elderly should follow the doctor's advice, take medications on time and in the right amount, and not increase or decrease the dosage or stop taking medications at will.

2. Read the instructions carefully

The elderly should read drug instructions carefully to understand the drug's ingredients, indications, contraindications, adverse reactions, etc. to avoid adverse reactions due to lack of understanding of drug information.

3. Avoid using drugs from unknown sources

Some medicines from informal channels may pose safety risks and should be avoided by the elderly.

4. Pay attention to drug interactions

The elderly should pay attention to the interactions between the drugs they take and consult a doctor in time if they have any questions.

5. Regular review

The elderly should go to the hospital for regular checkups to understand changes in their condition and the effectiveness of medications. If there are any abnormalities, they should seek medical attention in a timely manner.

Safe medication is an important part of the health of the elderly, which requires the attention of the elderly themselves and the guidance of doctors. Only by fully understanding one's own physical condition and the disease one suffers from and following the doctor's advice can one use medication safely, reasonably and effectively. At the same time, we should also call on the whole society to pay attention to the health of the elderly and provide them with better medical security and social care. In this new era full of challenges and opportunities, let us work together to protect the health of the elderly and let them enjoy a happy old age.

(Picture from the Internet)

Author | Han Mei is a practicing pharmacist who has worked in a well-known national tertiary hospital for more than 30 years and has rich medical care experience. She has represented the hospital on many occasions to go out for exchanges and study. She is an expert in food hygiene and nutrition, has a national nutritionist qualification, and is a science enthusiast.