Medication Reconciliation and Patient Education at a Primary Care Office in South Florida

Abstract

Mediation reconciliation is a process that is crucial for ensuring drug safety among patients who demonstrate low medication adherence. Medication reconciliation at the Primary Care office is achieved by educating patients about the purpose of prescribed medicines, drug-to-drug, and drug-to-food interactions. Besides, patients are consulted about interactions between conventional and complementary and alternative medicine, and the dangers of consuming substances (illicit drugs, alcohol, nicotine) together with prescribed drugs. This approach is planned to be accomplished by means of combining printed medication reconciliation lists followed by open-ended questions included to check patients’ pharmacovigilance and conduct patient engagement. In addition, the innovative approach of the present project is inclusion of patients’ significant others in the process of advancing their treatment adherence. Direct participation of patients and their family member in medication reconciliation is expected to bring significant positive results. This project is valuable for advanced nurse practicing because it demonstrates the new ways to improve nurse-patient interactions, advance communication with patients’ family members and in overall, advance their pharmacovigilance.