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- Published on: 9 December 2019
- Published on: 9 December 2019Medication use in population with intellectual disabilities is complex: Pharmacists can help
The healthcare environment in which people with intellectual disabilities (PWID) receive care and are prescribed medication is increasingly complex. PWID and their carers know the complexity of their needs, and they alone know the real gaps in healthcare that can occur in services provided to them. It is important that PWID are included in decisions about their own healthcare of which medication use is a major component. Exercising autonomy in the medication use process can be difficult and may not ensure the highest quality healthcare for PWID who usually are dependent on others for many aspects their care and access to care (1).
In an Irish qualitative study where 6 people with intellectual disabilities were interviewed about their medicines ,one participant prescribed Stelazine described that when he started taking it his ‘strength went down’ and ‘it was hard to do things’. (Alex). His concerned parent reported being ‘unheard’ during encounters with the prescriber (2).
Diverse interventions offer promising approaches to improving medication adherence for chronic conditions, particularly for the short term. Evidence on whether these approaches have broad applicability for clinical conditions and populations is limited, as is evidence regarding long-term medication adherence or health outcomes.
PWID can provide valuable insight into the medication use process.
Patients who are given and supported to use information to make decisions a...
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None declared.