Starting a brand new medication comes with a sense of hopefulness that it will support and improve your condition. On the other hand, it also often comes with a slew of worries and concerns about side effects, correct dosages, and potential mishaps. As a senior especially, it is imperative to take your medication correctly, on time, and in the correct dosages to prevent dangerous and potentially life-threatening medication errors. Today, we are here to walk you through all the different types of mistakes and some tips on preventing medication errors, so you can take your medications and treat your conditions worry-free!
Common Medication Errors in Seniors
According to a study aiming to determine the most common medication errors among elderly individuals, results showed that about 50% of respondents reported skipping dosages, taking them incorrectly, or not taking them as frequently as their doctors directed [1]. Likewise, seniors make the most calls to the National Poisons Information Service because of medication mistakes [2].
When doctors and healthcare professionals prescribe medications to seniors, they expect seniors to take them correctly so that they work effectively. Not only do medication errors make medication significantly less likely to take effect in treating one’s condition, but they can also cause dangerous adverse events that drastically alter a senior’s health for the worse. This is why it is endlessly important for seniors to clarify instructions with their doctors, confirm that they understand how to take the medication, make the strongest effort to take it as prescribed, and reach out for help if they are having trouble in any way.
Some of the most common types of medication errors among seniors include:
- Misunderstanding or Ignoring Dosing Requirements: According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were 102,384 reported deaths caused by drug overdoses in the United States in January of 2024 [3]. Although many attribute overdoses to non-prescription drugs, prescription drugs account for a great deal of overdose deaths [4]. Misunderstanding or ignoring prescription dosage requirements, taking too much of a medication, or taking doses too close together in time, can cause an overdose.
- Medication Interaction Risk: Healthcare professionals ask for a list of all medications and supplements you take for a reason. Medications often interact with one another, and can either cause the new medication not to work correctly, harmful side effects to occur, or new conditions to arise.
- Food or Substance Interaction Risk: Similar to medication interactions, food or substance interactions can also occur when introducing a new medication. For example, grapefruit is a common food that interacts with many types of medications and lowers their effectiveness, such as drugs for high blood pressure, anxiety, and abnormal heart rhythms [5]. Additionally, alcoholic drinks also often interact with medications and can intensify side effects [6].
- Errors in Taking Medication: Taking medications the incorrect way, such as taking it on an empty stomach when prescribing information recommends you to eat or drink water before administration, stopping a medication too soon, or taking it in the morning instead of at night, can all alter the medication’s effectiveness and lead to complications.
How to Prevent Medication Errors in Seniors
Mistakes happen, but you must do everything in your power to prevent medication errors, as these errors can majorly affect your health and even be life-threatening. Here are some tips to help you stay organized and avoid errors:
1. Create a Comprehensive Medication List
Maintaining an ongoing and updated list of all the medications you take, including over-the-counter medications and vitamins, is helpful for both you and your doctor. You should bring this list to appointments and show it to your doctor so they can recommend only medications that do not interact with your existing prescriptions. Likewise, feel free to research interactions and ask your doctor informed questions. Your list should contain the name of your medication (ideally the brand name and the generic name), the prescribed dose, the instructions for taking the medication, and the condition you take the medication to treat. Additionally, you can list any side effects or complications you experience while taking this medication. Share this list with your doctor, family, and/or caregiver so they know about what medications you are taking [7].
2. Use a Pill Organizer
Instead of opening and closing pill bottles every day, it may be helpful to organize your pills into a pill organizer at the start of each week. This may be especially helpful if you take many medications at once. Most pill organizers contain sections labeled for each day of the week, some even including a morning container and a night container. To organize your pills, reference your medication list and make sure you are putting in the correct amount and dose of each pill. Load the pills in one at a time, and triple-check that everything is correct.
- IMPORTANT TIPS: Only put pills you take every day on a scheduled basis in the pill container. Leave out pills you only take when you need them, like painkillers. Additionally, make sure that the pills are safe to put in a pill box — some medications, like oral chemotherapy, cannot be put in pill cases. Finally, if you need help or feel confused when filling your pill case, always ask for the help of someone with access to your prescriptions or medication list, like a trusted caregiver [8].
3. Set up Reminders
It can be easy to forget to take your pills or believe you took them out of routine when you did not. To avoid missing a dose or taking an extra dose by accident, set reminders to take your medication and confirm when you have taken it. The Apple “reminders” app, Google calendar, a physical checklist or calendar, or this pill reminder app can all be used to manage reminders on when and how to take your medications.
4. Become Educated About Each Medication
Medications can be confusing. There are different doses, instructions on when to take each dose, things not to do while on each medication, and prescriptions to remember to refill. To seek accurate information and clarifications on the medications you are taking, always contact your doctor directly. Online research can be good for helping you think of questions to ask your doctor, but information can sometimes be false, which is why it should never be taken as concrete advice. Your doctor is equipped with important information on the medications you take, so utilize them as a resource! They also personally know you as a patient and can make informed decisions based on your lifestyle and preferences.
5. Regularly Review Medications with Healthcare Providers
Regular medication reviews with healthcare providers, like doctors or pharmacists, can help clear up any confusion or discrepancies that may have arisen. Healthcare providers should perform medication reconciliation, which is a process that includes comparing your current list of medications to the list of medication(s) they are planning on prescribing you, making clinical and informed decisions based on the two lists, and then communicating the new combined list with you and your caregivers. This process is crucial for ensuring that everyone is on the same page when it comes to your medication plans [9]
How Does Senior Primary Care Target Medication Error Prevention?
Seniors 65 years or older typically take more medications than younger adults [10]. This is because seniors are at greater risk for developing chronic conditions. Managing multiple medications at once can be difficult for seniors to take care of on their own, which is why errors are likely to occur. This is where senior primary care comes into play. Senior primary care integrates medication management into part of their regular services so that seniors can rest assured that they are in good hands and can trust their doctor’s medication administration and treatment recommendations.
Medication Management for Seniors at Greater Good
Greater Good Health provides medication management as part of every senior’s primary care. Seniors can be confident that their medication plan is being managed efficiently and effectively, leaving little room for error with the correct protocol. Click here to find a clinic near you to get started on your senior primary care journey!