Eileen Koutnik-Fotopoulos
Staff Writer

The media coverage surrounding the recent death of Oscar-nominated actor Heath Ledger has brought attention to the very serious issue of prescription drug abuse and polypharmacy.

Pharmacy expert Jeannette Yeznach Wick, RPh, MBA, FASCP, Pharmacy Times writer, was interviewed by USA Today for a February 6 article on the topic. When she learned that an autopsy found 2 narcotic painkillers, 3 benzodiazepines, and one OTC sleep aid in Ledger’s blood, she thought: “If this brings attention to a problem that’s not just restricted to people who are rich and famous, it’s a good thing.”

“The place where we get ink with polypharmacy is with elders,” Wick said. “The problem is we don’t get any ink with younger people.”

Polypharmacy, or taking multiple drugs at one time, can lead to dangerous interactions especially when the drugs are prescribed by different physicians who do not know what else may have been prescribed. Pharmacy researcher Thomas Lackner, a professor in the department of experimental and clinical pharmacology at the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy, said it is not hard to get multiple medications for narcotics and benzodiazepines.

“Patients will see one physician, get a script, and see another,” he said in the article. “He [Ledger] might have gone to a pain clinic. He might have gone to a primary care physician, he might have gone to a psychiatrist.” He may have also gone to a single physician who prescribed all the medications. Lackner added that some physicians will do that “just to satisfy their patients. In the end, it harms their patient.”

“Is this going to be annual event until we get it?” she added referring to the accidental death of celebrity Anna Nicole Smith in February 2007 from a combination of 9 different drugs.

Health care experts recommend that patients use the same pharmacy or the same pharmacy corporation for all their scripts. Pharmacists are advised to ask patients all the medications they are taking and make sure the information is added to the patients’ computerized profile. Patients should ask the pharmacist for a printout of their medications and make sure every physician they see has a complete list.

For other articles in this issue, see:

New Deadline for Tamper-resistant Rx Pads Draws Near

Baxter Takes Action Against Heparin Reactions

Generic Biologics Appear to Be Closer Than Ever

Pharmacy Leaders Approve Bush’s Stimulus Bill

FDA’s Push to Rid Market of Unapproved Drugs Extends to IV Colchicine

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