Happy New Year to all!!!
As a primary care house call physician for seniors and home bound patients, one of the things I like to do at the beginning of each year is something called a medication reconciliation. Simply stated, this means getting rid of unnecessary or expired medications and supplements.
Too often, as physicians, we get caught up treating patients’ acute issues, ordering labs and studies, and moving on to our next patient. Medications can pile up if we are not careful. Less is always more, especially when it comes to the elderly. I like to review all of the medications with my patients or their caregivers one by one and ask them and myself the following: Are you still taking this? Do you still need to be on it? Is this medication helping? Are you having any side effects from any of them? Is there anything that is no longer necessary?
As a house call physician, I also like to take a peek in my patients’ medicine cabinets and look at all of the over-the-counter bottles that have piled up over the year. I often find things that are several years old, or cough and cold medication that they should not be taking due to potential side effects.
If you have an office-based physician, don’t hesitate to bring your “medicine cabinet” to him or her. Ask your doctor to do a New Year reconciliation on all of your medications and supplements. You might be pleasantly surprised!
From my home to yours, here’s to a healthy 2025!
Dr. Christine Pluta
Schuylkill Medical Associates, LLC
smahousecalls.com
2 thoughts on “OUT WITH THE OLD…”
Where can we safely dispose of old or unused medicine?
Check with your local pharmacy to see if they have a medication drop-off box or if they know of a place that does. Most medications can be thrown in your household trash. Empty the contents of the bottles into a plastic bag filled with used coffee grounds, cat litter, or dirt, then seal the bag and throw in trash. You can scratch your name off of the bottle and throw out or recycle. Medication should NOT but flushed down the toilet or sink unless it is on the FDA’s toxic drug flush list:
https://www.fda.gov/drugs/disposal-unused-medicines-what-you-should-know/drug-disposal-fdas-flush-list-certain-medicines