Prescription / Over-the- Counter Drugs

Transcription

1 AzPA 6 th Annual Meeting July 18, 2010 The Partnership for a Drug Free America, Arizona Chapter Pamela S. Murphy, MD Arizona Pharmacy Foundation Peggy Khan, Pharm.D., BCPS Pam Coumans, Pharm.D. Prescription / Over-the- Counter Drugs 1

2 What Not to Do! Rx/OTC Abuse Every day, 2500 teens abuse a prescription drug for the first time. 2

3 How Rx drugs are obtained % Got it from a friend Medicine cabinet in my home Internet Rx/OTC Medicines Abused Rx pain relievers (Vicodin, OxyContin, Soma) Rx stimulants (Adderall, Ritalin) Rx tranquilizers/sedatives (Xanax, Valium) Rx Sleep Aids (Ambien, Lunesta) OTC cough/cold with DXM (Robitussin, Coricidin) 3

4 Troubling Indicators of Medicine Abuse Unintentional drug poisoning now second leading cause of accidental death in US, after car crashes 111% increase in ER visits concerning non medical use of narcotics ( ) Rx drugs are now the most commonly abused drugs among year olds Key Factors Driving Teen Medicine Abuse Misperceptions that abusing medicine is not dangerous (safer than street drugs ) Ease of access via medicine cabinets at home or friend s house, own or other person s prescriptions 4

5 Teen perceptions of safety Sanitized Sanctioned Safe Created in a medical laboratory for healing purposes Accepted by society as a positive Certified by FDA What about parents perceptions? Street drugs are generally considered more dangerous Parents are less familiar with pills they often have no frame of reference since these types of drugs of abuse didn t exist in their youth There s a lack of urgency around Rx-OTC 5

6 Parent/Kid Conversation Only 1 in 5 (20%) teens report that their parents have never talked to them about alcohol or illegal drugs Half of teens (51%) say their parents have never talked to them about prescription drug abuse Take Action! Talk with your customers about this alarming trend Safeguard medications at home (and ask friends to do the same) Dispose of medications properly 6

7 Mission Statement: Our primary mission is to empower pharmacist to provide information and education to their patients so they are able them to make the right choices about prescription drugs. Why AWARxE? Tragic Events at Local Level Helps Address Public Perception Gap Medicine is more than a commodity. Value of pharmacists & other health professionals. Personal Responsibility in Health Care Proactive on Issues of Importance to Profession and Public 7

8 Campaign Focus Areas: Illicit Online Pharmacies Counterfeit Drugs Prescription Drug Abuse & Recovery OTC Abuse by Kids Medication Disposal Prescription Assistance Programs Medication Misuse / Patient Safety & Adherence How to educate your patients to be safe and know what they re getting 8

9 Online Does the website require a prescription? Where does the company ship their medications from? Do they keep the medication in a controlled environment? Who is monitoring the company to make sure it provides REAL medication? Illicit Eighty-five percent of anchor sites (135) do not require a prescription in order to purchase controlled prescription drugs online. Of those sites not requiring prescriptions: 42 percent (57) explicitly stated that no prescription was needed; 45 percent (61) offered an online consultation; and, 13 percent (17) made no mention of a prescription. i Source: The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University White Paper, You ve Got Drugs! V: Prescription Drug Pushers on the Internet, July 9,

10 Illicit Of the 159 identified websites offering controlled prescription drugs for sale in 2008: 24 percent (38) indicated that the drugs would be shipped from a U.S. pharmacy; 40 percent (63) indicated that they would be coming from outside the U.S.; and, 36 percent (58) gave no indication of the geographic source of the drug. Source: The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University White Paper, You ve Got Drugs! V: Prescription Drug Pushers on the Internet, July 9, 2008 Use Caution When Purchasing Medications on the Internet Some websites you visit: Are not licensed in the U.S. or do not have a licensed pharmacist working at the dispensing facility Will sell you medication that is medically unnecessary for you Won t verify the medication they are sending you will not interact with any other current medications you are taking Won t secure your personal information 10

11 Use Caution When Purchasing Medications on the Internet Some of the medications distributed on the internet: Are counterfeit (look real, but are fake) Are not the correct dose for your condition (too strong or weak) Are not approved by the FDA Are not stored properly in the shipping process Contain unsafe ingredients Have expired A Safer Way to Order Online NABP s VIPPS Accreditation (Verified Internet Pharmacy Practice Sites) For more information visit the following links: sp& 11

12 How to educate your patients to protect themselves and their family AT HOME Keep medications in original containers Never take someone else s medication Read the label every time you take a dose Keep a current list of your medications List your allergies (food, herbal, drugs) Place medication in a safe location 12

13 Lock Up Prescription pain killers Anti-anxiety medications Medications for sleep You play a big role in keeping these powerful medicines out of the hands of those who shouldn t have them Disposal Take medication as directed, including length of time. Discard medications when too old or no longer needed See expiration date, beyond use date, or EXP on Rx label or OTC package. Do not flush unused medications unless directed to do so on the label or patient instructions. 13

14 Disposal of Medications 1. Take your prescription drugs out of their original containers 2. Mix drugs with undesirable substance, such as cat litter, or used coffee grounds. 3. Put this mixture into a disposable container with a lid, such as an empty margarine tub, or into a sealable bag. Disposal 4. Conceal or remove any personal information, including Rx number, on the empty containers by covering it with black permanent marker or duct tape, or by scratching it off. 5. Place the sealed container with the mixture, and the empty drug containers, in the trash. 14

15 Avoid Excess Finish entire prescription p of antibiotics These are prescribed in exact quantities and are meant to be taken until all pills are gone even if you feel better before this point Left over antibiotics can lead to bacteria resistant to that antibiotic in the future Avoid Excess New Prescriptions or As Needed Prescriptions You can have your pharmacy fill a partial prescription (less than what is written by doctor) to test medication Or fill only what you need The rest of the prescription will be saved at the pharmacy for future fills 15

16 How to educate your patients to establish a relationship with their pharmacist and find a pharmacy home Safety Recommendations Encourage your patients to Participate in their health care Keep records of their allergies, medications and conditions Know their health care goals Use pharmacies they trust Ask their pharmacist and doctor when they have questions sts.htm 16

17 state us/publications/w- For More Information Is brought to you by the Arizona Pharmacy Foundation in collaboration with the Minnesota Pharmacy Foundation. For more information or to order your AWARxE toolkit, please contact staff of the Arizona Pharmacy Alliance , 17