Our ongoing project serves the geriatric community of Gainesville through Brown Bag events. The first event hosted at Oak Hammock was amongst first and second year pharmacy students and was a collaboration between PDC and ASCP (American Society of Consultant Pharmacists). Oak Hammock was chosen for the first location as it is one of the best long term care facilities in Gainesville. They have a partnership with UF Health and are even known for housing retired tenured professors of UF! Our goal is to counsel the residents on current medications and answer any general questions they have about their overall health. This is a great opportunity for pharmacy students to get first-hand experience and practice what we have learned so far.
Brown bag events are always a humbling experience because everyone learns something new each time. The three most prevalent health problems we usually encounter are diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia. These are normally seen the most at long term care facilities. One resident from our first brown bag event who stood out to me was prescribed a new medication for omeprazole, which is a proton pump inhibitor (PPI). This was a great opportunity for me as a student pharmacist to counsel this patient since I take a PPI on a regular basis for my GERD. This not only made the consultation effective, it made it personnel for both the patient and I.
My inspiration for starting this project through PDC stems from a previous brown bag event I attended last year which Dr. Randell Doty hosted. It was a unique experience and I saw that there was a need for this type of medication reconciliation in the community. Through PDC and other organizations I see this as a great opportunity to help the geriatric population of Gainesville. I see PDC establishing brown bags as a cornerstone for this fraternity. I see it happening once a month at different long term care facilities. I also see us branching out and doing different things at the brown bag events, like health screenings. Overall this project is a great way to focus on counseling patients and to work on communication skills.
BY: AMIT PATEL
Brown bag events are always a humbling experience because everyone learns something new each time. The three most prevalent health problems we usually encounter are diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia. These are normally seen the most at long term care facilities. One resident from our first brown bag event who stood out to me was prescribed a new medication for omeprazole, which is a proton pump inhibitor (PPI). This was a great opportunity for me as a student pharmacist to counsel this patient since I take a PPI on a regular basis for my GERD. This not only made the consultation effective, it made it personnel for both the patient and I.
My inspiration for starting this project through PDC stems from a previous brown bag event I attended last year which Dr. Randell Doty hosted. It was a unique experience and I saw that there was a need for this type of medication reconciliation in the community. Through PDC and other organizations I see this as a great opportunity to help the geriatric population of Gainesville. I see PDC establishing brown bags as a cornerstone for this fraternity. I see it happening once a month at different long term care facilities. I also see us branching out and doing different things at the brown bag events, like health screenings. Overall this project is a great way to focus on counseling patients and to work on communication skills.
BY: AMIT PATEL
November 10, 2016: Pine Grove
On the crisp morning of November 10th, Delta Delta brothers ventured to the local Gainesville micro-community of Pine Grove Apartments to help patients better understand and take control of their medications. Pine Grove Apartments provides a home to those who are 62 or older with a low income. Brothers sat down individually with patients and answered any inquiries about their medications. Questions ranged from if new prescriptions will interact with over-the-counter medications currently in use, to assessing if the variety of drugs the patient is prescribed would be the source of their side effects. Using the aid of online resources such as Clinical Pharmacology and knowledge gained so far from our classes, our brothers were able to intervene with future medical mishaps and communicate the importance of each medication along with potential interactions with not only other drugs, but lifestyle habits. Brothers also measured blood pressures of the patients, presenting guidelines of the range of hypertension and hypotension and prophylactic tips about adherence, diet, and exercise. By collaborative technique and interactive communication, the Delta Delta chapter truly displayed Alterum Alterius Auxillo Eget.
BY: EMILY ALMAND
On the crisp morning of November 10th, Delta Delta brothers ventured to the local Gainesville micro-community of Pine Grove Apartments to help patients better understand and take control of their medications. Pine Grove Apartments provides a home to those who are 62 or older with a low income. Brothers sat down individually with patients and answered any inquiries about their medications. Questions ranged from if new prescriptions will interact with over-the-counter medications currently in use, to assessing if the variety of drugs the patient is prescribed would be the source of their side effects. Using the aid of online resources such as Clinical Pharmacology and knowledge gained so far from our classes, our brothers were able to intervene with future medical mishaps and communicate the importance of each medication along with potential interactions with not only other drugs, but lifestyle habits. Brothers also measured blood pressures of the patients, presenting guidelines of the range of hypertension and hypotension and prophylactic tips about adherence, diet, and exercise. By collaborative technique and interactive communication, the Delta Delta chapter truly displayed Alterum Alterius Auxillo Eget.
BY: EMILY ALMAND