Over the past decade, the use of multiple medications (clinically known as “polypharmacy”) has skyrocketed among older adults. Aging brings ailments and chronic illnesses, and more illnesses generally lead to more prescriptions. But every additional medication taken by an older person increases the risk of a serious side effect. As medication use has dramatically increased, too many older adults are simply overloaded with medications that are more likely to harm rather than help them.
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Lown Institute's Vikas Saini, president, and Shannon Brownlee, senior vice president, discuss the latest Shkreli Awards winners on the Relentless Health Value podcast.
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According to the Lown Institute, a Massachusetts-based think tank focused on health care policy, American seniors are overmedicated – and this trend could be sending millions of them to emergency rooms due to serious side effects and interactions.
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In the last two decades the number of people age 65 or older who are taking five or more medications has increased 300 percent. A problem that is much bigger than America’s opioid crisis, the scope and impact of over-prescribing in older adults is detailed in “Medication Overload: America’s Other Drug Problem,” a report co-authored by The Lown Institute’s Judith Garber, a Health Policy and Communications Fellow at Lown; and Shannon Brownlee, Senior VP at the Institute and author of the book, “Overtreated: Why Too Much Medicine is Making Us Sicker and Poorer.” We talk with Shannon and Judith about what’s driving the practice of over-prescribing, solutions that have been effective in tackling the problem and what you can do to prevent adverse drug events. This episode airs on the heels of a newly-released report from Lown titled, “Eliminating Medication Overload: A National Action Plan.” Note: this episode originally aired April 11, 2019.
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