Stop the Madness! Preventing the Prescribing Cascade at the End of Life
May 3 @ 9:50 am – 10:50 am
The “prescribing cascade”—when a new medication is prescribed to “treat” an adverse reaction to another medication in the mistaken belief that the response is a unique condition or symptom – can pose numerous problems for patients at the end of life. Increased medication burden, the additional opportunity for adverse effects, and decreased effectiveness of symptom management medications are just a few potential issues. This workshop will discuss strategies for discerning medication side effects, de-prescribing medications, and managing end-of-life medication use for hospice and palliative care patients.
Dr. Caren McHenry Martin, a board-certified geriatric pharmacist, has worked as a North Carolina Clinical Pharmacist Practitioner and has authored more than a hundred articles for national pharmacy publications. Dr. Martin is currently serving as Senior Clinical Manager at Enclara Pharmacia.
Val Wersching, PharmD, is a clinical pharmacist with experience in ambulatory care, population health management, chronic care management, and hospice/palliative care. She is a Board-Certified Ambulatory Care Pharmacist who has worked with numerous innovative models focusing on providing high-quality pharmaceutical care.