Making a
DIFFERENCE One Brown Bag Medication Check-up at a Time By Kristie Holbrook & Debbie Beckstrom, PharmD students & Rachael Wadley
Are you or a loved one taking multiple medications? Roseman University provides a free service to the community called a “Brown Bag Medication Check-up” to review those items and make sure there are no issues. This type of event is quite literally what it sounds like—patients bring medications they are currently taking in a brown paper lunch sack and sit down with pharmacists for a free medication consultation—and Roseman’s pharmacy students are happy to offer it as a service. “We ask participants to bring all the medications they are currently taking,” said Donna Eom, a Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) candidate from the Class of 2017. “Student pharmacists then review all of their prescription medications as well as over-the-counter and herbal supplements to determine if there are any interactions and ways to optimize treatment.” Medications discussed can range from diabetes and heart disease prescription drugs to vitamins, herbal products and anything in between. This one-on-one time with a pharmacist provides opportunities for patients to learn more about how the drugs work, why they 28 | remEDy Summer 2016
are taking them, and any special recommendations about how to take specific drugs. For example, did you know that the commonly prescribed thyroid medication levothyroxine works best if it is taken by itself, 30 minutes before any other drugs or food? Statin drugs, a medication class used for treating high cholesterol. work best if taken at night because that is when the body processes fats and triglyceride levels rise. Depending on the event, Roseman students, with the assistance of pharmacy faculty, combine this medication review with blood pressure, blood sugar and blood cholesterol screenings to determine if the patient is properly adhering to their medication regimens, or if they may need to check with their doctor for adjustments to medication therapies. “These brown bag medication check-ups are important because pharmacists are the most accessible healthcare professionals and as student pharmacists, we aim to be an extension of that by connecting with our community through health fairs and events,” said Eom.
While anyone can consult a pharmacist at any time about medication information and interactions, pharmacists in retail settings typically do not have 15 to 30 minutes to completely review the patient’s medications. At the Brown Bag Medication Check-up events Roseman pharmacy students and faculty have no time limit. They are able to spend as much time as needed to completely review the patient’s medications as well as counsel them on the proper way to take them. Another important benefit of attending a brown bag event is that pharmacists can discuss medication-related side effects with patients. These can range from simple things like coughing or dry eyes to more serious things like muscle pain and weakness. During a recent brown bag event hosted by Roseman University’s NCPA chapter in South Jordan, student pharmacists spoke with a patient who had been taking a statin drug. The medication wasn’t achieving the benefits wanted so the patient’s doctor prescribed him a different (and more potent) statin medication, but the patient misunderstood his doctor’s instructions