On April 27, 742,497 pounds (371 tons) of prescription medications were collected from members of the public at more than 5,829 locations manned by 4,312 state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies that partnered with the Drug Enforcement Administration on the event. When added to the collections from DEA’s previous five Take-Back events, more than 2.8 million pounds (1,409 tons) of prescription medications have been removed from circulation. The National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day aims to provide a safe, convenient, and responsible means of disposing of prescription drugs, while also educating the general public about the potential for abuse of…
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Hospital discharge personnel must tell you what level of care is required after you leave the hospital. Also, you need to know what medications and therapies should be taken and when. Suppose family members are told that 24-hour-a-day supervision is needed; then you should ask if this means assisted living or some other interpretation. Additionally, if medications change when in the hospital, find out what should be taken and when. You should control your own placement. Before you leave the hospital, you or your family should know where you want to go. Do not depend exclusively on someone inside the…
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However, a person's age is not a justification for removing there keys. Seniors in their 80s and 90s can drive safely, while others in their 50s and 60s are dangers to themselves and others. However, seniors get the blame for bad driving. The most driving-accident-prone age group is 15 through 19. Your parents losing their independence, by removing the car, can be devastating to them. However, if physical and mental condition impare their ability to drive, you have to act for their and others safety. Here are some indicators: Vision: Your parent's optometrist or ophthalmologist can identify vision problems, limitations, concerns…
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Moving between hospitals or into rehabilitation and other care centers can be a stressful time, especially for an elderly loved one. Unfortunately, too, these “care transitions” can create far greater problems than stress, as they also are prone to creating problems with the patient’s care. Potentially, these problems can have long-term affects. Care transitions are not a recent concern of health professionals, but been on their radar screen for some time. In fact, a recent study is the subject of a recent post on the New York Times’s blog series, “The New Old Age.” According to the study, a very…
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Prescription drugs are of particular concern. In a recent survey, 49% couldn't name a single drug their parents took. Ask parents about their medications and, if necessary, do research, experts say. Find out the dose, what it's for, who prescribed it and why. People 65 and older account for about a third of all medications prescribed in the U.S., according to the National Institutes of Health, and older patients are more likely to have long-term and multiple prescriptions, which could lead to unintentional misuse. "It's kind of a never-ending process for caregivers," says Sandy Markwood, head of the National Association…
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In a recent USA Today article called “Most Baby Boomers Lack A Plan To Care For Parents” a majority of Baby Boomers say they are likely to become caregivers for their parents, but only half can name any medications their parents take, a new survey shows. The survey of 600 adults ages 45 to 65, conducted for the Home Instead Senior Care network, also found: •31% don't know how many medications their parents take. •34% don't know whether their parents have a safe deposit box or where the key is. •36% don't know where their parents' financial information is located….
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Currently, there are five FDA-approved Alzheimer drugs that treat the symptoms of Alzheimer's — temporarily helping memory and thinking problems in about half of the people who take them. But these medications do not treat the underlying causes of Alzheimer's. In contrast, many of the new drugs in development aim to modify the disease process itself, by impacting one or more of the many wide-ranging brain changes that Alzheimer's causes. These changes offer potential "targets" for new drugs to stop or slow the progress of the disease. Many researchers believe successful treatment will eventually involve a "cocktail" of medications aimed…
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Sleep problems are often dismissed by caregivers for two common, misguided reasons, says geriatric psychiatrist Ken Robbins. First, they assume that poor sleep is part of aging or of dementia, and that nothing can be done about it. Second, they fear that addressing sleep problems is “selfish,” only for their benefit. The senior whose sleep issues are addressed will experience better mood, more energy, and less pain; sleep is closely connected with all three conditions. And the caregiver who makes his or her own sleep a priority will be better able to cope with caregiving stresses and will have more…
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Frederick, MD 
301-663-9230
