When medications are prescribed, the intent is to improve your quality of life by curing a disease, reducing or eliminating the symptoms of a disease, arresting or slowing a disease process, or preventing a disease or its symptoms from appearing in the first place. But, medication is a two-edged sword. The same dose of a medication given to two different people may help one and harm the other. This is especially true with the elderly. Even when medications are taken as intended, some adverse reactions occur that are severe enough to cause disability and even death.

The Journal of the American Medical Association recently stated that if adverse reactions to medications were classified as a distinct disease, it would rank as the fifth leading cause of death in the U.S. The economic cost rivals that of cancer, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, and other major diseases and conditions commonly affecting the elderly population. People over age 65 are especially vulnerable to medication-related problems, due to the number of medications they take and the biologic changes of aging and disease. Medical experts believe that many medication-related problems are predictable and thus preventable. If your pharmacist is a Geriatric Certified Pharmacist, he or she has demonstrated knowledge and skills in geriatric pharmaceutical care and will be better prepared to advise you on your drug therapy needs. Click here for more details.