When I was a child, one family doctor took care of all of us and handled any medication requests. All of our prescriptions were processed through the local drug store and my mother had to drive down and physically pick them up. Our pharmacist knew everything we took and could advise us or check with our doctor if he felt something was off. It was a very personable system.

Nowadays some prescriptions go to a mail order pharmacy, some are filled at a large chain drug store, and we buy supplements alongside our groceries. The pharmacists don’t know us, see only a portion of what we take and don’t have a clue what additional stuff we might be putting into our bodies. We both see multiple doctors who write prescriptions for different complaints without necessarily checking our current meds list. How can anyone possibly give us good advice on taking medications without having a complete picture?

It seems that the answer is me. I need to take responsibility by doing my research and asking the right questions of the right person at the right time. I am lucky because my husband maintains his own list of medications and shares it with his medical team. He is cognitively aware of what he takes and how it makes him feel. Still, I need to know the basics and when a new medication is added I need to double check to make sure it is safe. I can take advantage of the moment to ask the doctor if there are any known contraindications with any of the other medications on our list. I can follow up with the pharmacist when I submit the prescription, knowing that they may have limited time to speak with me.

I need to understand why each medication is being prescribed for my husband, what the expected outcomes are and what a negative reaction looks like. If I do all of this and still have questions, maybe it is time to find an independent local pharmacist and request a consult. If I share the entire list of medications and supplements with them, they should be able to help me understand any potential issues. Then I can truly say I am managing my husband’s meds.