Medications & Side Effects

MYTH:

Medications should never be increased to the point of the appearance of a side effect.

FACT:

It is a basic tenet of pharmacology that a medication should be advanced in dose until the medication is either fully effective or side effects appear or are likely to appear. This process is more complicated in individuals who have difficulty expressing themselves – including some children, seniors, developmentally disabled folks or even patients for whom English is a second language. All these folks may have difficulty expressing a developing side-effect when it is more mild until it becomes more moderate or severe and is noticed by others. It is thus critical to have an individual’s support system adequately trained in observing the individual being treated for even subtle changes and upstreaming that information promptly to the prescribing clinician.

Myths & Facts

Testimonials

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