Micaela: Knowing about multiple medicines – Sources of information
Listen to patients and health professionals speak about their experience with taking multiple medicines.
Micaela
Female
Age at interview: 38
Number of medicines: 21
Cultural background: Anglo-Australian
Micaela has only recently discovered that her pharmacists are a readily available resource for medicines information.
I've had varied experiences, partly from moving around a bit in the time that I've been away. So, I've gone through stages where I've sought information and assistance, I guess, from pharmacists and then I've sort of not been in the mood to do it or whatever. I now rely on two main pharmacies.
One is the people by my workplace and they're literally right next to my workplace and they're very friendly and helpful. I've engaged in a lot more discussions or, if I've picked up a particular ... for example, I was trying out a new antihistamine and so I sought further information about interactions there, whereas in the past, I've picked up something and just not bothered to check.
The other pharmacist is back where I grew up and the suburb I grew up in and it's a family pharmacy. The father ran it before them. So, they've actually become ... they actually know quite a lot about ... because the suburb I grew up in is a kind of ‘villagey’ kind of place and everybody knows everybody really, even though it's getting bigger, which is inevitable. So, gradually, they've become more involved in giving me advice. I've sought it too and they haven't been intrusive or nosey and they haven't used that personal knowledge inappropriately, I feel, or anything.
But I think also my ... I don't know that awareness is the right word, but ... I think there was something you mentioned and the fact of suddenly realising that your pharmacist was a resource that you could use has only come on me more recently perhaps.
The Living with multiple medicines project was developed in collaboration with Healthtalk Australia.