News Brief: Patients concerned about medication-related issues

A vast majority of Americans are concerned about medication-related issues, such as drug interactions and medication errors, when they enter a hospital or health system, according to a survey conducted by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) in Bethesda, MD. The national survey found that 85% of Americans are concerned about at least one medication-related issue.

The top concerns cited by respondents included:

• being given two or more medicines that interact in a negative way (70%);
• being given the wrong medicine (69%);
• cost of treatment (69%);
• complications from the medical procedure, such as an infection (69%);
• potential harmful side effects from taking a medication (67%);
• cost of prescription medicine (67%).

Survey respondents were asked to indicate their level of concern for 10 health issues related to their care in a hospital or health system. Three-fourths of respondents said speaking to a pharmacist would help address some of the 10 health concerns mentioned. The vast majority of respondents (90%) said they would talk to the pharmacist about their medication if the opportunity were made available within their health system. About a quarter (23%) of the respondents surveyed recalled speaking with a pharmacist while in a hospital, clinic, or nursing home.

ASHP commissioned the poll of 1,004 adults nationwide between May 1 and 5, 2002. The data were weighted to reflect the demographic make-up of the adult U.S. population. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points. For more about the survey, see www.ashp.org.