A new provincial policy is seeing the Appropriate Use of Antipsychotics (AUA) initiative expanding in Alberta. In particular, the policy addresses the use of restraints in all Alberta Health Services’ facilities and partners. The four types of restraints included in the policy are pharmacologic, mechanical, physical and environmental Click here to read more about “Restraints as a Last Resort” and other important topics in the Appropriate Use of Antipsychotics (AUA) Winter 2016 Bulletin.
The following @Pts4Chg tweet has generated some good conversation and idea generation in the Twittersphere and beyond.
"'Once an addict decides to get care, they have to get in promptly — not four to six weeks…'" #opioid #yyc https://t.co/yrm8o4hhiy
— Patients 4 Change (@Pts4Chg) December 28, 2016
As one individual tweeted, “Problem needs a systems approach. A great opportunity for AHS innovation lab.”
If you have not read the article referred to in the tweet, you may wish to do so. (Thanks, Sandi, for bringing this news story to our attention.)
Dietary supplements are often promoted as natural and safe. However, this is not necessarily the case.
Lamar Odom’s recent brush with death has drawn the nation’s attention to dietary supplements. The former basketball player suffered an ischemic stroke and cardiac arrest induced by cocaine and two herbal male enhancement supplements, Reload and Libimax Plus. He purchased these supplements from the brothel where he was found unconscious. What Lamar and most people don’t know is that Reload contains sildenafil also known as Viagra. And Libimax Plus contains the drug tadalafil, the same ingredient in Cialis, another prescription drug for erectile dysfunction. Dietary supplements are regulated and monitored by the FDA differently from prescription medicines. The labeling information of supplements is not strictly enforced. Information may not necessarily include all ingredients and at times, the supplements may contain less or more substances than what the labeling indicates.
Click here to continue reading.
Antibiotic resistance is becoming a growing concern. One need only consider the strain of bacteria that contains genes which show no effect to colisitin, the “antibiotic of last resort,” to recognize the threat that exists. According to John Gums, Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs and Professor of Pharmacy and Medicine at the University of Florida, there are a number of reasons that antibiotic resistance has occurred, one of which is inappropriate prescribing. While the solution to this situation is clear – doctors need to stop prescribing so many antibiotics – there are other factors at work. As Gums explains:
I believe there are two reasons inappropriate prescribing is so hard to curb. First, there is a philosophical disconnect between the data about antibiotic resistance and what drives prescriber behavior. The second is that physicians may bend to patient demand for antibiotics, even if the physician knows it won’t help or isn’t really needed.
Click here to read the article.
Do drug manufacturers know the effects their products have on our bodies? While we may assume that they do, according to Luke Timmerman and Meg Tirrell, this is not necessarily the case. Click here to listen to their podcast
