Medication management and why it is so important
Medication management reviews and sets standards regarding the way medications are prescribed, stored, transported and used in an attempt to protect both the medical professionals who administer them and the patients who receive them. The standards set forth in the document are minimum standards of practice and are expected to be used as the basis for local and national policies. The MHRA in 2004 stated that Medication Management was ‘The clinical, cost-effective and safe use of medicines to ensure that patients get the maximum benefit from the medicines they need, while minimizing potential harm’. The standards cover not only prescription drugs for human and animal patients, but also blood and blood products. And this applies both to medication taken at home and to medication administered in hospital or other healthcare settings.
Medication management is also the responsibility of the individual, as medications are essentially powerful drugs that can be extremely dangerous if not used correctly and under the right circumstances. It is important that you know exactly what you are taking, the dose to take, how often to take the medicine, and for how long. The active ingredient in a medication can seriously interact with other medications you are taking, so it is important that your doctor knows exactly which tablets you take each day, whether they are vitamins, homeopathic, herbal, or other prescription medications. Your doctor or pharmacist will discuss managing the medications you take so that they are most effective in treating your problem. It is also vital that you let your doctor know if you have had a reaction to any medications you have taken in the past. If you are a woman and there is a possibility that she is pregnant, the doctor should know about it, since the medicine can be harmful to the fetus.
Medication administration depends on the accuracy of the prescription and dispensing process. The safety of medicines is a joint responsibility of several organizations, the pharmaceutical companies that develop and produce the medicine, the regulatory agencies that approve the use of the medicine, the doctors that prescribe the medicine, the pharmacists that dispense the medicine, and finally the patients taking the medication or caregivers giving the medication to the patient they care for. Guidelines should be provided to cover medication administration.
Medication management aims to minimize errors or the potential for errors by implementing procedures to educate people about medication safety and thereby ensure that medications are handled safely when they are prescribed, dispensed and manage with minimal errors. Although many medication errors do not cause patient harm, it has been estimated that thousands of deaths worldwide can be attributed to medication errors that can be reduced with a good medication management system. Many of the errors involve taking a higher dose than prescribed, for example taking two tablets instead of one, for example taking a second dose because the patient does not remember taking the first, or experiencing side effects from the medication. These do not cause lasting damage and you can get advice from your doctor or pharmacist on how to treat these problems.
Modern technology is being developed within the NHS to help with medication management by collecting patient information, for example keeping a list of medications prescribed for that patient and any adverse reactions that may have occurred in the past that can be used when dispense additional medications for that patient. patient. It can also help provide information to the patient about what dose to take and how often, how to store the medication, and possible side effects that may occur and what to do if they do occur.
If you have any questions about medicines you have been prescribed that have not been explained to you or need clarification, talk to the doctor who prescribed the medicine, this could be your GP if you are in hospital or your GP . . If you need medication advice, a pharmacist can help you or advise you who to talk to.
If you want more information on this, you can get brochures online or from the Council for Nursing and Midwifery Medicines Management Guidelines dated 2010 or the Department of Health document – Creating a safer NHS for patients – Improvement of drug safety dated 2003.