While my Dad was still alive, he and my Mama lived in a cute little cottage in the country. Over time, my Dad developed Parkinson’s disease, and Mama was beginning to show increasing signs of dementia. Our family – my sister, husband, and I did as much as we could for them as they needed – without trying to take over and completely run their lives.
Along with cooking and cleaning, one of the biggest struggles they had was with their medication. They increasingly lost the answers to questions such as: When to take which medications, and how much? How often? When and where to get more?
My sister is a genius with Excel, so she put together a spreadsheet that answered all those questions. However, our parents weren’t reading the spreadsheet, so we still needed to administer the various pills and injections as well as pick up the refills. By doing this we were able help them live as happily and (in their minds) independently as possible.
After my Dad passed, Mama couldn’t live on her own. Dementia had stolen many of her abilities, so we worked together to care for her. The spreadsheet containing all the information about her medications was a huge help when it came to dispensing them correctly. In addition to the various pills, Mama also needed blood sugar checks, insulin, and B12 injections along with eye drops for glaucoma. If we could have had someone prepackaging all the various pills into blister packs sorted into ‘morning, noon, and night’ (as well as providing automatic refills) it would have taken quite a weight off our shoulders.
Pharmacies do so much more than dispense pills
Years later, I was attending a FrankieMae Foundation event and came across such a service offered by Randolph Medical Pharmacy in Charlotte, NC. I wanted to learn more about them, so I spoke with Elizabeth Willis, the Marketing and Community Outreach Coordinator for the pharmacy to learn more about their various services. I was amazed at everything they offered – for no extra charge.
Elizabeth and I agreed on a time to get together and talk about their program…and a bit about her. She shared with me that she has lived in Charlotte most of her life; she was born in Chicago, her family moved here when she was about two. I learned she is perfect for her position – which she sees as her calling. She was raised in a caregiving environment. Her great-grandmother lived with the family while she was growing up, and currently, her grandpa lives with her parents. Armed with her background and all her personal experience, she found herself being fascinated by and volunteering for senior adult-focused events while at college. She has an undergraduate degree in Public Health, minoring in Gerontology, and went on to earn a Master of Science in Gerontology.
Gerontology is the study of all aspects of aging
Gerontology covers the process of aging in older adults – how we age. We all age differently, but also learning what that could look like, along with discovering resources to benefit and help seniors age as well as possible.
Her background before working for Randolph Medical Pharmacy included working in a variety of senior-focused positions including Activity Coordinator for senior facilities, and Lifestyles Enrichment Coordinator in a variety of places. Her focus was primarily on finding each person’s light or joy. Elizabeth shared a story about the time she was working with a non-verbal lady in ‘Memory Care’. Surprisingly, every time she gave her some lavender-scented lotion, the lady would rub her hands together, smile and start singing! It was her light. That experience caused her to try to ignite each person’s light with everyone she encountered.
Through her work with senior adults and caregivers, Elizabeth saw that medication management is a huge part of daily life. It can often be a source of frustration and confusion. She wanted to find a solution to this issue. An opportunity came up for Elizabeth to work at Randolph Medical Pharmacy. Since it is a ‘Community-based pharmacy’ as opposed to a chain store, it can customize what it offers according to the needs of its clientele. One of the pharmacy’s main core values was also on seniors as they offer a service called “Long Term Care at Home”, (LTCH).
Some of the benefits of using an LTCH pharmacy are that they will provide:
Medication packaging – which means they will organize all your medications into easy-to-open ‘blister packs’ arranged and packaged by day and time of day. They will also work with all your physicians, so there are no worries about refills or updating when you change medications. This also includes vitamins and supplements. Best of all, they deliver them right to your home free of charge. An additional free benefit is that they will also provide in-home vaccinations for a variety of vaccines.
Some obvious benefits to this program are an increase in Medication Adherence – which helps lower ER visits, hospital re-admissions, and the need for facility-based care.
In general terms, to qualify for Home and Community-Based services, you need to be taking six or more medications (including vitamins and supplements) and have at least three chronic conditions. In addition, a person needs to require help with two activities of daily living, such as: walking, preparing meals, bathing, dressing, transportation, and taking medications, to name a few. In many cases, an individual is automatically enrolled if they are in a ‘government waiver’ program such as Medicaid, Meals on Wheels, or transportation help along with several other helpful programs. (Requirements may vary by area).
Once Elizabeth began working for the pharmacy, she knew she was in a good place. One of her greatest joys is to help seniors and caregivers simplify their lives. Her motto is “If you can simplify any aspect of caregiving, why not?”
Ideas and tips for remembering to take your medicine.
All the help with blister packs and refills won’t help much if the medication isn’t taken correctly. Here are a few tips for remembering to take the right pills at the right time.
- Begin by creating a list of all medications complete with instructions.
- Use a pill organizer or blister packs to plan a week or two at a time.
- Check pills regularly to make sure none are missing or taken out of order.
- There are a variety of free or low-cost Smartphone Medicine Reminder apps to help remind you.
- Set an alarm on your phone for the times of the day you need to take your medication.
- Write a reminder on a bright-colored sticky note and stick it on your mirror or pill box.
- Tie taking medicine to a specific meal or favorite TV program.
- A friend of mine shared with me her tip for remembering to take her medication. She keeps a glass of water near her medications, if the glass is still full, it reminds her to take her pills.
If you don’t live in the Mecklenburg County area, don’t worry. Other pharmacies across the nation also offer this service, including mail-order pharmacies. Amazon offers a limited range of pre-packaged medications in a program called Pill-Pack. It may be right for you.
Does your pharmacy offer a similar service? It’s worth a call to find out. As Elizabeth said, “If you can simplify any aspect of caregiving, why not?”
Has your world been touched by dementia?
My book, “Finishing Well: Finding the Joy in Dementia“, is a collection of stories and tips about doing life with my Mama. May it encourage and inspire you to find joy on your own, unique journey.