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The Christmas holiday period can present as a particularly challenging time for medication adherence. In addition to the usual factors contributing to poor adherence 鈥� cost, side effects, not understanding why the medication is necessary and being overwhelmed by too many medications 鈥� during the holidays, they are joined by two other causes.

One is the disruption to routine due to the distraction and abundance of social events, making it hard to remember if medication has been taken. Another is that some consciously choose not to fill their prescriptions during Christmas holidays so that they鈥檒l have extra money to buy gifts for loved ones.

鈥淭he festive season and holidays can be a time when it is easy to lose track of normal daily schedules. Everyone wants to relax and have a good time but things don鈥檛 always go according to plan, especially when daily medication routines are interrupted,鈥� Founder and Managing Director Gerard Stevens AM said.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 why it鈥檚 important to plan ahead and take steps to ensure that medication problems don鈥檛 get in the way of enjoying this important time of the year.鈥�

Holiday safety help from pharmacists

鈥淪afe medications make safe holidays. Hopefully many of us will be able to get away this year and catch up with family and friends for Christmas and the New Year. But what happens if you run out of your medications or lose them?鈥� Stevens asked.

鈥淚t can be critical that you don鈥檛 miss a dose. Being able to explain exactly what you take and what dose is another consideration. It鈥檚 important to be prepared,鈥� he warned.

Stevens said pharmacists can take some steps to help minimise the chance of medication misadventure while customers are away from home, giving them and their family peace of mind:

1. Offer a for the duration of the holiday. This will ensure all medications prescribed are available for the duration of the trip and act as a reminder to take the recommended doses.

2. Suggest carrying a in a wallet or purse.

People can find it difficult to remember and explain exactly what medications and doses they take, especially with multiple medications.

鈥淎round one in five people aged 70 or older are on four or more medications, which they truly need. It can be difficult to remember all of the names and correct dosages,鈥� Stevens explained. 鈥淪o having an up-to-date list can be very useful.鈥�

One solution is Webstercare鈥檚 PocketProfile Medicines List, which can be simply printed via the Webster-pak Medication Management Software (MMS). It contains a person鈥檚 entire medication profile, including images of medications, and neatly folds down to the size of a credit card, so it鈥檚 easy to keep in a purse or wallet. Whenever a medication changes, the pharmacist can issue an updated PocketProfile.

鈥淚n an age where things are increasingly digital, users of the PocketProfile don鈥檛 need the latest gadgets, apps and electronic devices 鈥� it won鈥檛 run out of charge and it won鈥檛 shut down,鈥� Stevens said.

The PocketProfile also contains the person鈥檚 home pharmacy and phone number, enabling a pharmacist at a holiday destination to simply ring the home pharmacy to confirm the medications that were prescribed, before issuing emergency replacements to last the remainder of the holiday.

鈥淚t is particularly helpful in emergency situations. Medical staff can immediately see a patient鈥檚 medications and any other medical concerns, including 鈥榠n case of emergency鈥� contact details,鈥� Stevens said.

3. Ask customers if they are going away this Christmas.

鈥淎ll pharmacies have close relationships with their regular customers and learn indirectly whether they leave home for a Christmas holiday. Simply asking your staff to ask the question 鈥� 鈥楢re you going away on holidays this Christmas?鈥� 鈥� can start a discussion that leads to improved health [and] safety of many customers, especially those taking multiple medications. If medications are safely and securely packed into a Webster-pak there is much less risk of missing doses. This is especially important for people on important medication.

鈥淐onsider speaking to them [customers] about the Pharmacist Shared Medicines List, a consolidated list of medicines and uploaded to the customer鈥檚 My Health Record.鈥�

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