The open enrollment period for open enrollment into next year's Medicare Part D plans are coming up.

October 15th - December 7th

Please visit http://www.Medicare.gov for more information about this years enrollment options.

http://www.medicare.gov/Publications/Pubs/pdf/11219.pdf is the link especially for enrollment periods.

When looking at different plan options please consider the total cost in addition to the premium cost each month. There is a Plan Finder on the website where you can enter your personal Medicare numbers and your medications to then compare plans in your area.

For our patient's we will review your options along with other opportunities to save on medications, in addition to the regular medication reviews for safety and effectiveness. Review exceeds  just looking at opportunities to substitute generic for brand medications. Different manufacturers provide more or less assistance to people in need of help affording their medications.

When OTC or prescription medications are no longer needed, they should be removed fromyour home.  Unused medications can cause accidental poisoning.  More than a million children are treated each year in the United States for poisoning caused by household chemicals and medications.  Older children and teens may be tempted to experiment with easily available medications, causing harm to themselves or their friends.  Nationally, one in five teens has reported abusing prescription drugs that were not prescribed to them.

Medication disposal should be done in a manner that minimizes the chance of misuse and also protects the environment.  Flushing medications down the toilet or throwing them in the trash can cause pollution of lakes, streams and water supplies. If there are no sites in your area, you can dispose of them in the trash as described below. Organized disposal sites will dispose of collected medications by hazardous waste incineration, offering the highest degree of environmental protection.

If a local program or event is not available for the collection of narcotics and other controlled substances - do not flush!  Instead, dispose of the medications in the trash as follows:

1. Take unused, unneeded or expired medicines out of their original containers.  Mix them with an undesirable substance like kitty litter or used coffee grounds.
2. Remove or destroy all identifying personal information, including prescription number, on the empty medicine container labels.  You can destroy personal information by covering with black permanent marker or by scratching it off.
3. Wrap the medication mixture and the empty containers in newspaper to help conceal them and place them in the trash.
4. Be sure to keep children or pets away from the trash before it is picked up and hauled away.

For more information on the proper disposal of household medications, visit http://www.cdphe.state.co.us/hm/hhw/howto/medications.htm  and   www.smarxtdisposal.net.

I have been asked what training I did other than a "regular" pharmacist. What makes me a great medication counselor?

My answer is that up until we graduate from pharmacy school we, as pharmacists, have almost the same education as each other.

After graduation I did a residency. My residency was in primary care. I worked in a medical practice in the office with physicians, running 3 clinic models and seeing a lot of different patients. I researched medication issues for physicians and for patients. I made newsletters for the physicians, and taught both pharmacy students (PharmD) and students becoming physician assistants (PA).

Then I worked in a disease management program as a resource to nurses and patients answering questions. Reviewing issues with medications and helping people understand how to best use both prescription and OTC medications became my passion.

My four years of continual research and translating that into answers for both medical staff and people without medical training is unique in the profession of pharmacy. Our job as pharmacists is to know what should be done and what to look for when medications are not appropriate.

If you are concerned about your medications, or the medications of a loved one arrange an appointment.

I have to start off by saying hello.

I am happy you found this website and I hope you are doing well. I am a preventative pharmacist, when I did my training, like all pharmacists part of it was in hospitals.

Unlike all pharmacists... I followed as many people as I could from nurses to respiratory therapists and physicians. I also followed pharmacists from different specialties and what I learned is that other than labor and delivery, I wanted to help keep people out of hospitals. I saw people in the hospital because of the medications they took and other people because they did not take medications they needed to take.

I want to help people work with their primary physicians to stay well. I can give a hundred examples of what can go wrong with taking and not taking medications, here are a few common issues I have seen:

1) A lot was covered in a short time with the prescriber, and at home it does not make as much sense as it did sitting in the office. People don't know what "Take As Directed" means.

2) Medications were prescribed a while ago and you're not sure if they are still appropriate. So you either just keep taking them, or you have just not told the next prescriber you were on them. Since they didn't add it back it must not be needed.

3) The problem the physician said you have doesn't make you feel bad, but taking the pill does - so you made an executive decision and either don't take the pills or just sometimes, like before an appointment or if you feel bad.

4) Every time you go to a physician they give you another pill, or several so you only go if you are sick. When you go you tell them as little as possible.

5) A physician on the television said that the type of medication you take is dangerous, so you stopped taking it.

6) A physician on TV, or an newspaper article, or a knowledgeable friend told you about a great new product so you started taking it - without discussing it with someone knowledgeable who has access to your lab tests (these assess your liver and kidneys). ** I have to just note that everyone needs to know if you put something in your mouth and swallow it - your liver will filter it, that's the liver's job. Certain things will pass out of your kidneys and that is normal. But there are things that people with certain conditions should NOT put in their mouths (supplements, foods, medications) and your lab tests tell your practitioner what is safe and in what amounts**

7) You just cannot afford the medications the prescriber has given and when you tried to pick them up, you just couldn't make the choice for those medications (that medication) over other needs.

These are all major issues. I can continue with more examples because this is what I do everyday. I talk to people about their medications, I answer questions, I assess if something could be improved with the medication use and I teach them how to get more from the medications they choose to take. I help them understand why some medications could be helpful, so they can make more informed decisions. I take my 9 years of education and daily experience- then break it down into information at that individual patient's level on that person's medications, questions and conditions. This is personal service, not advice to the general public.

Pharmaceutical Care, medication reviews, by a pharmacist with your medical chart, or much of it, is a missing piece in our current system. I am offering to be your personal pharmacist. This is a service some people have access to already. Most people do not know what a pharmacist can do when they have all the needed information. So I am going to use this blog as a way to provide on going examples of what a personalized medication review can do for you. Also benefits from ongoing reviews and optimization.

~ Patrina