Thesis
Medication Reconciliation in Older Adults Transitioning From Acute Care to Home Care
Washington State University
Master of Nursing (MN), Washington State University
05/2011
Handle:
https://hdl.handle.net/2376/3081
Abstract
Approximately 35% of older adults will experience an adverse drug event (ADE). Older adults are particularly vulnerable to ADEs following transfer from the acute care to home because of the addition of new medications and/or removal of previous ones during hospitalization. The home care clinician can positively affect the outcome of these changes by compiling a list of medications taken by the older adult in the home setting and reconciling it against the list of medications from any recent acute care discharge. While examining the medications taken by the older adult, the home care clinician should also look for medications known to be of high risk in older adult populations using tools such as the Institute for Safe Medication Practices List of High Alert Medications. Interviewing clients to determine if prescribed medications are causing any unanticipated side effects, or reactions, or if there are issues related to nonadherence is also necessary. Any potential medication issues discovered should be investigated and communicated to the older adult's physician(s) and pharmacist(s). Once the reconciliation process is completed, a compressive and accurate list of medicines should be shared with the older adult client as well as the pharmacy and other healthcare professionals involved in the client's care. Throughout the client's homecare, ongoing vigilance in assessing for medication effects is necessary to promote optimal pharmacotherapy and health outcomes.
Metrics
Details
- Title
- Medication Reconciliation in Older Adults Transitioning From Acute Care to Home Care
- Creators
- Kevin J. Fullerton
- Contributors
- Cindy Corbett (Advisor)
- Awarding Institution
- Washington State University
- Academic Unit
- Research Projects, College of Nursing
- Theses and Dissertations
- Master of Nursing (MN), Washington State University
- Publisher
- Washington State University; Spokane, Washington
- Identifiers
- 99900591148001842
- Copyright
- http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us; Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 US)
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Thesis