Search PubMed⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search PubMed

Results for “PRESCRIPTIONS”

Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 739 records · Page 41Linked to original sources
PubMed2004

Overdose in young people using heroin: associations with mental health, prescription drug use and personal circumstances.

OBJECTIVE: To identify patterns of mental health, prescription drug use and personal circumstances associated with heroin overdose in young people. DESIGN: Linkage of data on use of Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) prescription drugs with data from a self-report questionnaire. SETTING: Inner metropolitan Melbourne, Australia. SUBJECTS: 163 young people, 15-30 years, using heroin. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Personal circumstances, mental health (as measured by various scales), and PBS-listed prescription drug use. RESULTS: Young people using heroin reported high rates of feelings of hopelessness, depression, antisocial behaviour, self-harm and diagnosed mental illness. A prior history of overdose was associated with previous mental illness, which in turn was associated with being female, having poor social support, being dissatisfied with relationships, and living alone or in temporary accommodation. While feelings of hopelessness and antisocial behaviour were strongly associated with overdose history, the number of PBS prescription drugs used had a very strong relationship with overdose, particularly benzodiazepines, other opioids, tricyclic antidepressants and tranquillisers. CONCLUSIONS: Further research to explore causal relationships between prescription drugs and heroin overdose is warranted. Improved data linkage to PBS records for general practitioners may facilitate safer prescribing practices.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

U.S. Army Reserve (Medical) soldier prescription challenges during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The continuous requirement to mobilize and deploy reserve soldiers presents numerous challenges for the Army Medical Department. One of the challenges in the preparation for deployment of reserve soldiers is the assessment of chronic prescription medication requirements and the eventual filling of these requirements during deployment. The assigned unit pharmacy officer can provide a value-added service through the identification and coordination of the pharmaceutical needs of an activated deploying unit. A unit pharmacy officer conducted a prescription medication use analysis on an activated Army Reserve Medical Unit before deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The study population consisted of 181 soldiers identified through a volunteer survey administered by the assigned pharmacy officer. The prescription medication requirements for the unit were identified in a predeployment status and an evaluation was conducted to determine the ability to sustain the medication requirements once the unit was to be deployed. Gaps in the availability of prescription medication requirements in a predeployed status were identified indicating potential deficiencies in the capability to replenish prescription medication requirements during deployment.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Literacy and misunderstanding prescription drug labels.

BACKGROUND: Health literacy has increasingly been viewed as a patient safety issue and may contribute to medication errors. OBJECTIVE: To examine patients' abilities to understand and demonstrate instructions found on container labels of common prescription medications. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study using in-person, structured interviews. SETTING: 3 primary care clinics serving mostly indigent populations in Shreveport, Louisiana; Jackson, Michigan; and Chicago, Illinois. PATIENTS: 395 English-speaking adults waiting to see their providers. MEASUREMENT: Correct understanding of instructions on 5 container labels; demonstration of 1 label's dosage instructions. RESULTS: Correct understanding of the 5 labels ranged from 67.1% to 91.1%. Patients reading at or below the sixth-grade level (low literacy) were less able to understand all 5 label instructions. Although 70.7% of patients with low literacy correctly stated the instructions, "Take two tablets by mouth twice daily," only 34.7% could demonstrate the number of pills to be taken daily. After potential confounding variables were controlled for, low (adjusted relative risk, 2.32 [95% CI, 1.26 to 4.28]) and marginal (adjusted relative risk, 1.94 [CI, 1.14 to 3.27]) literacy were significantly associated with misunderstanding. Taking a greater number of prescription medications was also statistically significantly associated with misunderstanding (adjusted relative risk, 2.98 [CI, 1.40 to 6.34] for > or =5 medications). LIMITATIONS: The study sample was at high risk for poor health literacy and outcomes. Most participants were women, and all spoke English. The authors did not examine the association between misunderstanding and medication error or evaluate patients' actual prescription drug-taking behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: Lower literacy and a greater number of prescription medications were independently associated with misunderstanding the instructions on prescription medication labels.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

An analysis of predictors of prescription drug costs among Medicaid nursing home residents in Texas.

A study was conducted to examine the relations among patient-specific demographic characteristics, previous prescription costs and utilization, and subsequent prescription costs for a population of 55,677 Medicaid nursing home residents in Texas. Patient-specific factors, based on previous patient utilization and cost levels, exist within the Texas Medicaid nursing home population that may serve as predictors of subsequent prescription costs. Although some statistically significant relations exist between prescription costs and patient demographic factors such as age, sex, and location, these demographic factors are of little or no practical value in prediction of prescription costs for subsequent periods of time.

Aged↗
PubMed1999

[The pediatric prescription according to its origin and the motive for the consultation in a basic rural health area].

OBJECTIVE: To describe the paediatric prescription in a rural health district in terms of the origin and reason for consultation. DESIGN: Cross-sectional descriptive study. SETTING: Garraf Rural Health District, Barcelona. PARTICIPANTS: The 3 basic care paediatrics units in the district. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: 1068 attendances of children of both sexes under 15 were collected. Recorded on each visit to the paediatrics clinic were: age, sex, reason for consultation (RC), and, if medicine was given, the product prescribed and the origin of the prescription. The number of children receiving treatment increased progressively with age. 87% +/- 2.8% of prescriptions originated with the paediatrician. Therapeutic groups of respiratory apparatus and systemic anti-infection drugs accounted for 69% +/- 2.9% of all prescriptions. Only 2.3% +/- 0.5% had fixed-dose associations. The most common RC was upper-tract respiratory infection, mainly treated with a single therapy (76.6% +/- 6.1%). In the case of the second most common RC, acute bronchitis, 94.6% +/- 4.2% of all cases received drugs treatment with single therapy or two simultaneous treatments. Acute tonsillitis was mainly treated with antibiotics (86.4% +/- 6.6%). CONCLUSIONS: The frequencies of the pathology groups detected in the Health District correlate with other studies' findings. Analysis of the origin of prescriptions shows the high decision-making capacity of the Health District's paediatricians. The pharmacological profile employed is good, though it could be improved.

Child↗
PubMed1999

Prescription and nonprescription drug use among at-risk community-dwelling seniors in Ottawa-Carleton.

BACKGROUND: The Council on Aging Ottawa-Carleton conducted an evaluation study aimed at reducing the inappropriate use of medication by community-dwelling seniors. During a 17-month period from 1990 to 1992, 278 of 415 seniors consented to participate. All were new referrals to home care, all were 65 years of age or older and all were taking a minimum of six prescription medications. OBJECTIVE: To describe the patterns of prescription and nonprescription drug use among high risk elderly people living in the Ottawa-Carleton region. ANALYSIS: Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were used to explore relationships between the numbers of drugs (prescription and nonprescription), drug classes and drug subclasses, and sex, age and number of prescribing physicians. RESULTS: The top 10 prescription or nonprescription drugs taken by study participants were consistent among diseases and health problems most commonly found among the elderly. Comparisons by rank for subclasses of drugs indicated that eye, ear, nose and throat (EENT), and respiratory drugs were considerably more prevalent among males than females, while women took more hormones and anxiolytics, sedatives and hypnotics. Age also appeared to have an effect; the proportions of respiratory drugs and hormones decreased with age. In contrast, vitamins and EENT drugs were most prevalent among the oldest seniors. These findings were supported by the results of multivariate analyses. Having three or more prescribing doctors was positively associated with the use of laxatives. Findings from multivariate analyses indicated that for prescription drugs, the youngest age group was about four times more likely than the oldest age group to be taking at least eight drugs. For nonprescription drugs, the only statistically significant finding was that those with three or more doctors were twice as likely as those with one or two doctors to take at least one nonprescription drug.

Aged↗
PubMed1999

[Does the system of prescription issuance influence the therapeutic compliance of hypertensive patients?].

OBJECTIVES: To find out whether the system for issuing prescriptions is linked to the therapeutic compliance and control of the blood pressure of a group of hypertense patients, and to quantify compliance with hypertension treatment through an indirect measurement method (counting pills). DESIGN: Crossover, descriptive study. SETTING: Torrelodones Health District (Madrid). PATIENTS: 54 patients known to be hypertense, of which 27 collected their prescriptions over the counter with no need for a doctor's appointment and 27 received them at a consultation with their doctor. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: To measure the therapeutic compliance, first a phone call and then a surprise visit to the patient's home were made. At this visit, all the hypertension drugs prescribed were counted. It was specified that patients would be considered compliant if they had a compliance rate of 80-110%. 53.7% of the patients were considered good compliers and 46.3% bad compliers (of whom 37% were under-compliers and 9.3% over-compliers). The statistical analysis found that 59.3% of the patients who collected their prescriptions over the counter were good compliers, whereas 48.1% of those who did so at a medical consultation were (p = 0.41). 7.4% of patients who collected their prescriptions over the counter controlled their blood pressure well, whereas 22% of those who collected them at a consultation did so (p = 0.12). CONCLUSIONS: No statistically significant association was found between compliance and blood pressure figures, and systems of issuing prescriptions. The percentage of good compliers is high in comparison with other studies, but still insufficient.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

[Potential drug interactions and number of prescription drugs with special instructions at hospital discharge].

OBJECTIVE: Up to 6% of all hospitalizations are due to adverse drug reactions and 20% of these are caused by drug-drug interactions. There is only little information on the prescription frequency of drug-combinations with the potential to induce dangerous drug-drug interactions and drugs with the need for special patient instruction (e.g. inhalers). The aim of our study was to investigate the frequency of such drug prescriptions at hospital discharge. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In a retrospective, descriptive study drug prescriptions of 100 patients discharged consecutively from the department of internal medicine of a 300 bed-hospital were analysed. Possible drug-drug interactions were detected using a special computer program. Furthermore, the number of prescriptions warranting patient instruction such as anticoagulants, antidiabetics, hormones, immunosuppressive drugs, chemotherapeutics, antituberculotic and antiepileptic drugs as well as inhalatives and injections was recorded. RESULTS: The mean age of the 100 patients (61 men, 39 women) was 61.7 years, the mean duration of the hospital stay was 9.2 days. At discharge, patients took an average of 3.5 different drugs. Half of the patients were given drug-combinations with the potential for drug-drug interactions, whereby 5% were at risk for the development of interactions of severe and 42% of intermediate degree. All drug-combinations with potentially severe interactions were prescribed deliberately. 31% of all patients took medications with the need for special education, with inhalatives being the most frequent. The prescription of drugs with potential interactions and the necessity for special patient instruction was more frequent in the elderly. CONCLUSIONS: Drug-combinations with the potential of harmful interactions and drugs with the requirement for special patient instruction are frequently prescribed at hospital discharge. The frequency of prescribing these drugs increases with age. Detection of potentially dangerous drug-drug interactions is simplified by special computer programs. Careful patient instruction about the use of certain drugs is a key issue to improve patient compliance and to guarantee an optimal treatment effect.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

Improving compliance with the dialysis prescription as a strategy to increase the delivered dose of hemodialysis: an ESRD Network 4 quality improvement project.

Delivery of an inadequate dose of hemodialysis is associated with a significant increase in the relative risk of both hospitalization and death. We hypothesized that noncompliance with the dialysis prescription, defined as failure to achieve the prescribed blood flow, failure to dialyze for the prescribed duration, or failure to use the prescribed dialyzer, was a significant factor in patients not achieving a urea reduction ratio (URR) of > or =0.65. We identified the 29 dialysis facilities in ESRD Network 4 that had the lowest average URR and/or lowest percent of patients with a URR > or =0.65 based on quarterly data reports. Each facility was surveyed by review of all dialysis treatment sheets from a single week by network staff to evaluate for noncompliance with the dialysis prescription. Facility-specific data were reported back to each facility. Each facility was required to develop a facility-specific quality improvement plan after receiving intensive education on the quality improvement process. After 9 months the facilities were resurveyed. Although the compliance with the dialysis prescription decreased from 54.0% to 53.6% (P =.026), the delivered URR increased from 0.679 +/- 0.072 to 0.688 +/- 0.070 (P =.026) with an increase in the percentage of patients with a URR > or = 0.65 from 69.7% to 75% (P =.0096). Kt/V increased from 1.37 +/- 0.26 to 1.41 +/- 0.27 (P =. 0001). Analysis of the process changes instituted by the individual facilities showed an increase in the prescribed dose of dialysis. Thus, although the process goal of improved compliance with the dialysis prescription was not achieved, the outcome goal of an increased delivered dose of dialysis was met through an alternative process change of an augmented dialysis prescription.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

[How do patients evaluate the newly introduced system of substituting prescriptions?].

In 1997 a new prescription system was introduced in Denmark. The pharmacist must now substitute the prescribed drug with a cheaper version either by a generic prescription (G-substitution) or by an original prescription (O-substitution) unless the prescribing doctor indicates that substitution is not allowed in the specific case. The purpose of this study was to obtain the patients' view on the new prescription system and to identify any related problems. The investigation was based on structured interviews. The interview guide was designed as a questionnaire, which was validated and tested before use. The response rate was 82%. The study showed that 84% of the patients were satisfied with the system and 85% of the patients thought that it should continue. Eighty-three percent of the patients had tried another version of the substituted medicine earlier. Out of these, 6% had experienced more side-effects from the substituted medicine, and 10% felt that the substituted medicine had a weaker effect. There was one case of erroneous medical treatment as a consequence of the substitution system. Only few problems such as more side-effects or less effect of the substituted medicine was experienced by the patients. It can be concluded that the patients in general are satisfied with the new prescription system.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

[Evaluation of the quality drug prescription for patients to be discharged from a university teaching hospital: statutory aspects].

The aim of this work was to assess the quality of written drug prescriptions for patients to be discharged from our hospital. The pharmacological pertinence was not evaluated. Each statutory mention was noted according to a binary system: 1=mention present, 0=mention not present. The total note after analysis of 308 drug prescriptions was 7.3 +/- 1.3 (3.3-10) for a 3.1 +/- 1.0 (1-10) for each prescription. Concerning the "physician" note, the average was 8.1 +/- 1.8. Nevertheless, the function and the name were quite ofently omitted (1/2 and 1/3 respectively). The lowest note was obtained for mentions relating to the patient [5.8 +/- 2.0 (0-10)]. The age and the name were omitted (9/10 and 1/10 respectively). The "drug" note was closed to total note and represented 7.5 +/- 1.8 (2-10). The detailed analysis showed that 1.8% of drug prescriptions presented an illegible drug name. The dosage form was not specified (1/2), the galenic form (1/3), the schedule (1/3) and the posology (1/5). These omissions did not have any serious repercussion as they were rectified in futher control steps. Nevertheless, educational and corrective measures could be aimed to improve the drug prescription.

Documentation↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Prescriptions and consumption of hypnotic and anxiolytic drugs in the South University Hospital of Marseille].

An investigation of prescription and consumption of hypnotic and anxiolytic drugs in hospital was carried out and has associated a transverse prescription study and a prospective consumption study. The prescription study was undertaken on one day in several medical departments of Sainte-Marguerite Hospital in Marseille in February 1999. Of the 91 hospitalized patients included, 42 (46 per cent) had been prescribed a hypnotic or anxiolytic. Furthermore, the quantities of drugs taken out of the pharmacy during the month of February were 1.54 time more than those prescribed. This discrepancy was even more obvious in the case of certain benzodiazepines such as bromazepam (ratio from 1 to 4) and lorazepam (ratio from 1 to 8). Self-prescription and patients being supplied without a prescription are the hypotheses advanced to explain this phenomenon.

Anti-Anxiety Agents↗
PubMed2001

Design of a computerized system for the retrospective analysis by the physician of his own drug prescriptions.

The quality of drug prescription is known to be poor in many medical domains. Feedback information may help the physician to improve this component of his medical activity. The increasing use of computerized drug prescription systems makes possible the retrospective processing of prescriptions made over a given time period. This paper describes the design of a computerized system for providing feedback information to the physician about the quality of his drug prescribing activity. It is designed to be used by the physician himself. The analysis is based on two groups of quantitative indicators, simple and composite. The constraints that must be satisfied to calculate these indices automatically are given. They are related to the coding systems used for drug prescription, knowledge on drugs and patient data. The system design is based on modeling according to UML formalism. We give also a concrete view of the main functions of the system, based on a pictorial illustration with a component of the user interface. Some limitations and the possible extensions of this system for analyzing simultaneously the prescriptions made by set of physicians are discussed.

Drug Prescriptions↗
PubMed2002

[Writing quality of medical prescriptions at the Social Security System of Ouagadougou].

A medical prescription may sometimes include errors which might have a negative impact on the patient's health. The objective of this study was to analyse the key elements of medical prescriptions given to patients covered by the Ouagadougou social security health insurance system. The population of practitioners included in the study comprises all of the medical doctors practicing in Ouagadougou. The study consisted of a review of all prescriptions registered by the family benefits and professional hazards service branches dating from January 1st to December 31st 1997. The identification of the doctors and patients was satisfactory in more than 97% of the prescriptions. However, certain errors were frequent such as the omission of the treatment's duration, the medication's dosage, and the form. The oversights observed were comparable to those described in the literature. Repeating similar periodic evaluations with a systematic feedback relayed to the practitioners will bring about an improvement of medical prescriptions.

Burkina Faso↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Characteristics of antibiotic prescription during office visits in the Hospital Cayetano Heredia in Lima, Peru].

BACKGROUND: The present descriptive cross-sectional study, assesses the proportion of antibiotic prescription (PPA), and the quality of it (CPA) in the ambulatory consultation of the department of medicine at the Cayetano Heredia Hospital, as an approach to antibiotic use in Peruvian hospitals. METHODS: The study population was conformed by the patients who went to outpatient care from January 8th to February 2nd, 2001; a sample size of 120 patients was determined out of 1449 patients, to assess CPA. Data on antibiotic prescription was collected, revised and qualified by three experienced physicians, using as gold standard the United States Pharmacopeial Drug Information criteria. RESULTS: PPA was 13.53% (CI 95%: 11.77%-15.29%), without significant differences according to age, sex, doctor's offices and turns. The most frequent diagnoses with antibiotic prescription were: urinary tract infection and pharyngoamigdalitis; the antibiotics more frequently prescribed were: ciprofloxacine and cotrimoxazol. Of the antibiotics, 70.00% were prescribed as non commercial name and 70.83% were registered in the National Petitory of Essential Drugs. We found that 81.67% (CI 95%: 79.68%-83.66%) of the prescriptions were inadequate mainly due to: duration (59.20%) and dose (20.00%) of the antibiotic treatment. CONCLUSIONS: PPA obtained is lower than those published in, and CPA is as high as the reported one in other studies. The investigations in this field are still scarce. It is important new research in order to know about prescription, use and adverse reactions of antibiotics. It is necessary to develop a antibiotic policy to improve access and rational use of antibiotic.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

The effects of cost-sharing on essential drug prescriptions, utilization of medical care and outcomes after acute myocardial infarction in elderly patients.

BACKGROUND: After a change in Quebec's policy on drug coverage in August 1996, elderly patients' copayments for prescription drugs increased. We assessed the impact of this drug policy reform on prescribing patterns for essential cardiac medications, utilization of medical care and related health outcomes after acute myocardial infarction. METHODS: Patients at least 65 years of age who experienced acute myocardial infarction between 1994 and 1998 were identified through the Quebec discharge summary database. Drug claims databases were analyzed to determine rates of prescription of essential cardiac medications for cohorts of patients admitted before and after the policy reform. The impact on readmissions for cardiac-related complications, outpatient visits to physicians and emergency departments, and mortality rate was also assessed. RESULTS: The proportion of patients who received prescriptions for beta-blockers, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and lipid-lowering drugs increased over time and, more specifically, did not appear to decline with the change in the drug policy. In addition, the policy reform did not appear to affect persistence of drug therapy (the proportion of time for which patients were covered by prescriptions over the year after discharge). There was no within-class shift from more to less expensive drugs. Use of cardiac procedures increased over time, but this increase was unrelated to the date of the policy reform. Finally, rates of readmission for complications, visits to individual physicians and to emergency departments, and mortality rate were unchanged. The findings did not vary with sex or socioeconomic status. INTERPRETATION: Prescriptions for essential cardiac medications and care related to acute myocardial infarction in elderly patients did not change with increases in out-of-pocket copayment, regardless of sex or socioeconomic status.

Adrenergic beta-Antagonists↗
PubMed2002

Delayed antibiotic prescriptions: what are the experiences and attitudes of physicians and patients?

OBJECTIVE: To explore the experiences and opinions of family physicians and patients regarding the delay of antibiotic prescriptions, to be dispensed if symptoms persist or worsen over time, in treating upper respiratory tract infections. STUDY DESIGN: Qualitative study using semistructured interviews conducted in family practice in Auckland, New Zealand. POPULATION: Thirteen physicians recruited from a study of family physicians' reported antibiotic prescribing and 13 patients recruited from the intervention arm of a randomized controlled trial on delayed antibiotic prescribing. OUTCOMES MEASURED: Patients' and physicians' experiences of delayed antibiotic prescriptions for upper respiratory tract infections. RESULTS: The primary themes identified were value judgments of antibiotics, decreased antibiotic use, patient-centered factors, effects on the physician-patient relationship, patient convenience, adverse effects of delaying prescription, and selectivity for use of antibiotics. Many themes were common to both patients and physicians. Physicians valued empowering patients' decision making about their health care management more highly than did patients. Decreasing antibiotic use was not a key factor for most patients. Both groups acknowledged the value in saving patients time and money. Physicians viewed the strategy as giving patients reassurance and meeting their expectations for antibiotics. Negative implications included perception of physician incompetence and physician loss of management control. Opinions were mixed regarding which patients, under which conditions, were suitable for delayed antibiotic prescriptions. CONCLUSIONS: Although delayed antibiotic prescriptions are effective in decreasing antibiotic use for conditions not clinically warranting antibiotics, neither patients nor physicians universally endorsed this strategy. Research to establish formalized recommendations for patient suitability and instructions for use would be of value.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Sharing prescription medication among teenage girls: potential danger to unplanned/undiagnosed pregnancies.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to determine how often children and adolescents share prescription medications and, because of teratogenic concerns, assess specific reasons why girls might engage in medication-sharing behaviors. METHODS: Data were collected as part of Youthstyles, a mail survey of children and adolescents 9 through 18 years of age (764 girls and 804 boys) about health issues, attitudinal variables, and media preferences. Information collected by the survey included the respondent's history of borrowing or sharing prescription medications, the frequency with which sharing occurred, the reasons why medications might be borrowed or shared, and who influences their decisions to borrow or share medication. RESULTS: A total of 20.1% of girls and 13.4% of boys reported ever borrowing or sharing medications. Of the girls surveyed, 15.7% reported borrowing prescription medications from others, and 14.5% reported sharing their prescription medication with someone else. The reported likelihood of sharing increased with age. Medication sharing or borrowing was not a "one time only" emergency use for many: 7.3% of girls 15 through 18 years of age had shared medications >3 times. Reasons that girls gave for why they would share medications included having a prescription for the same medicine (40.2%), getting the medication from a family member (33.4%), having the same problem as the person who had the medication (29%), or wanting something strong for pimples or oily skin (10.5%). CONCLUSIONS: Medication sharing is relatively common among children and adolescents and is more common among girls than boys. An adolescent who receives a medication via sharing does not receive the appropriate information about its actions and possible negative interactions with other medications or any other associated risks. Sharing potentially teratogenic drugs is of special concern. Many barriers exist to communicating the risk about teratogenic drugs to women and girls, particularly if they are not planning a pregnancy or are unaware that they are already pregnant. These findings suggest the need for basic research on issues related to the dangers of medication sharing and teratogenic risks, as well as the development of successful approaches to communicate these risks.

Adolescent↗