From Medline Industries
I will never forget her confusion, the sudden decline in being able to care for herself or function. Overnight, she became debilitated and aged. That “she” was my paternal grandmother, a woman who took on a bear by staring it down, ready to fire her gun if it moved. The bear knew she wasn’t kidding. When I rushed her to the hospital, I was shocked to learn that she had a severe electrolyte imbalance caused by three different doctors prescribing diuretics and blood pressure medications. None had checked to see what she was currently taking, none had told her what to stop.
That was in 1982. Fast forward to 2016 and a phone call from a dear friend of mine who had just rushed her mother to the hospital. Her mother had declined overnight and upon exploration, they found she was taking multiple medications that caused an adverse reaction. Medication reconciliation had not occurred from the hospital to the home setting which led to her taking all of her medications – past and present…[more]
