The Consultant pharmacist : the journal of the American Society of Consultant Pharmacists
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Transitioning older adults from one care setting to another is often challenging, both for the patient and the health professional. The older adult often is stressed, both physically and psychologically, and may well be overwhelmed by requests for information, including a complete list of medications from different members of the interdisciplinary team. The goals of geriatric assessment are to begin a review of a patient's lifestyle and medication therapy prior to crisis and trauma, improving the outcomes of interventions and decreasing anxiety, for both patients and caregivers.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Student use of health literacy tools to improve patient understanding and medication adherence.
Evaluate curricular changes related to health literacy and determine impact on independent-living senior residents as part of an introductory pharmacy practice experience for third-year student pharmacists. ⋯ Students' use of health literacy communication tools during encounters with independent-living senior residents can result in greater patient understanding and empowerment, which may in turn help improve medication adherence.
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To evaluate the safety and efficacy of dabigatran for stroke prevention in the elderly population. ⋯ Advanced age alone should not exclude the use of dabigatran. Clinicians should base their decision on patient characteristics and careful assessment of risk versus benefit.
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To assess Medicare beneficiaries' willingness-to-pay (WTP) for medication therapy management (MTM) services and determine sociodemographic and clinical characteristics influencing this payment amount. ⋯ The mean WTP for MTM was $33.15. WTP for MTM significantly varied by race, subsidy status, and number of prescription medications taken. WTP was significantly higher for nonsubsidy recipients than subsidy recipients, and significantly positively correlated with the number of medications regularly taken and the beneficiary rating of the delivered services.
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Azithromycin is a commonly prescribed macrolide antibiotic for the management of community-acquired pneumonia in the outpatient setting. Recent data have led to a growing concern of abnormal changes in cardiac electrophysiology and arrhythmias associated with its use. As azithromycin continues to be prescribed, clinicians should be aware of the new safety data and how it may affect concomitant medications or comorbid conditions in a patient. This article utilizes a case-based approach to assess azithromycin use and the risk of QT-prolongation and cardiac arrhythmias.