Polypharmacy and Medication Management

Is more always better?

 

Have you or your family...

  • Visited different clinics / hospitals to seek treatment for their medical condition?
  • Had multiple change in your medications?
     

If so, you are at risk of the problems of polypharmacy.

Managing your medications – At home

 

Let us show you how you can manage your own medications at home.

 

 

What is POLYPHARMACY?

 

Polypharmacy is the concurrent use of multiple medicines (commonly defined as five or more) either dispensed according to a prescription or bought over-the-counter.

 

Forgetfulness and Non-adherence

  • Know the indications of your medicines
  • Use a pillbox!

Expired medicines

  • Check and discard expired medicines
  • Collect only sufficient medicines to the next visit

Medicine without indication

  • Be mindful of what you are taking the medications for

Taking wrong medicine and doses

  • Always update your medicine regimen

Duplicate therapy

  • Keep an updated record of your medicines and supplements

Conflicts with other medicines

  • Keep an updated record of your medicines and supplements

Improper storage conditions

  • Know the proper storage conditions of your medications

Over collection of medicines

  • Keep track of supply of medicines
  • Collect only sufficient till the next visit

 

What is Doctor Hopping?

 

Because of the ease of accessibility to primary healthcare / general practitioner clinics, it may seem like a convenient option to ‘hop’ from one clinic to another to avoid queues or seek second opinions. However, changing between clinics unnecessarily to review the same conditions may not be advisable. Here’s why:

  • By returning to the same clinic consistently for follow up, physicians will be better able to understand and track your condition.
  • Visiting multiple doctors can increase the chance of duplicate or conflicting medications, especially if doctors are not fully aware of medications prescribed by other clinics.
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