Doctors & patients are saying about 'A-Fib.com'...
"A-Fib.com is a great web site for patients, that is unequaled by anything else out there."
Dr. Douglas L. Packer, MD, FHRS, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN
"Jill and I put you and your work in our prayers every night. What you do to help people through this [A-Fib] process is really incredible."
Jill and Steve Douglas, East Troy, WI
“I really appreciate all the information on your website as it allows me to be a better informed patient and to know what questions to ask my EP.
Faye Spencer, Boise, ID, April 2017
“I think your site has helped a lot of patients.”Dr. Hugh G. Calkins, MD Johns Hopkins,
Baltimore, MD
A-Fib Patients (and Others): Should You Be Prescribed Fewer Drugs?
Did you know you can outgrow your medication? Perhaps your lifestyle has changed with more physical activity, better nutrition or weight loss and subsequently you may no longer need medications for diabetes, cholesterol or high blood pressure.
But you keep taking them, because no one told you to stop.
Simple errors can occur, too. Dr. Michael A. Steinman, a geriatrician at the University of California, San Francisco, recalled asking a patient to bring in every pill he took for a so-called ‘brown bag review’. He learned that the man had accumulated four or five bottles of the same drug without realizing it, and was ingesting several times the recommended dose.
“We spend an awful lot of money and effort trying to figure out when to start medications and shockingly little on when to stop.”
Dr. Caleb Alexander, Johns Hopkins Center for Drug Safety and Effectiveness
De-Prescribing: A Brown Bag Review
Always keep an accurate and updated list of medications you are taking. (See our free download form below.)
Periodically ask your physicians or pharmacist for a ‘brown bag review’. Discuss whether to continue or change any of your regimens. Ask about:
▪ any medicines you no longer need?
▪ any medications you can do without?
▪ if a lower dose would work for any of your medicines?
▪ if any of your medications might interact with another?
▪ any non-pharmacologic alternatives?
If your doctor agrees to ‘de-subscribe’ a medication, realize it isn’t as simple as saying “stop” taking it. It’s a process requiring caution and skill by your doctor. (Afterwards, remember to update your list of medications.)
Free Download: Keep an Inventory List of Your Medications
Keep your doctor and other healthcare providers up-to-date on all the medications you are taking by using this Medications List from Alere. Download (and remember to save the PDF to your hard drive).
Besides prescriptions, the form has sections to list over-the-counter drugs, vitamins, herbs and mineral supplements, too (as they can interact).
Print several copies of the blank form and keep handy in your A-Fib file or binder. When completed, give a copy of your inventory to each of your healthcare providers.
Also see my article: Are Your Herbal Supplements Interacting With Your Medicines?
