Tag Archives: prescribing

New poll: More counseling, prescribing limits needed for seniors using opioids

Leave a reply
Liz Seegert

About Liz Seegert

Liz Seegert (@lseegert), is AHCJ’s topic editor on aging. Her work has appeared in NextAvenue.com, Journal of Active Aging, Cancer Today, Kaiser Health News, the Connecticut Health I-Team and other outlets. She is a senior fellow at the Center for Health Policy and Media Engagement at George Washington University and co-produces the HealthCetera podcast.

Photo: Marko Javorac via Flickr

Nearly a third of older adults have received a prescription for an opioid pain medicine in the past two years, but many didn’t get enough counseling about the risks of the drug, how to reduce their use, when to switch to a non-opioid option, or what to do with leftover pills, a new poll finds.

Researchers from the University of Michigan found that three-quarters of older adults surveyed said they would support prescribing limits by doctors and other efforts to limit exposure that could possibly help combat the national crisis surrounding opioid misuse, especially due to diversion. Continue reading →

Unnecessary prescribing of dental antibiotics may be adding to C. diff cases

Leave a reply
Mary Otto

About Mary Otto

Mary Otto, a Washington, D.C.-based freelancer, is AHCJ's topic leader on oral health and the author of "Teeth: The Story of Beauty, Inequality, and the Struggle for Oral Health in America." She can be reached at mary@healthjournalism.org.

Photo: Francisco Bengoa via Flickr

Potentially deadly Clostridium difficile (C. diff), which sickened an estimated half million Americans one recent year, has gained notoriety as a hospital-acquired infection.

Patients who have taken antibiotics face an elevated risk of acquiring the diarrheal disease, and the majority of infections occur in health care facilities, research has shown. Continue reading →

Reporter looks at why, how clinic banned drug reps and their samples

Leave a reply
Joanne Kenen

About Joanne Kenen

Joanne Kenen, (@JoanneKenen) the health editor at Politico, is AHCJ’s topic leader on health reform and curates related material at healthjournalism.org. She welcomes questions and suggestions on health reform resources and tip sheets at joanne@healthjournalism.org. Follow her on Facebook.

Markian Hawryluk

Markian Hawryluk

Six years ago, a clinic in Oregon made the decision to ban representatives from the pharmaceutical companies. The doctors and staff say goodbye to free samples of expensive drugs, lavish lunches, pens, notebooks, mugs, toys for children and other “benefits.”

Markian Hawryluk, a health reporter with The Bend (Ore.) Bulletin, picked up on a recent journal article about the transformation and used that as his inspiration to write about how the clinic made its decision and how it changed the way doctors there practice medicine, as well as how the move impacted the community.

As data is collected under the Physician Payments Sunshine Act, a part of the Affordable Care Act that will require pharmaceutical companies to disclose the money and gifts given to physicians, reporters may start noting similar changes in their area.

Read more about how Hawryluk reported the story and what he learned about the influence drug reps and samples have on prescribing.