I picked the Green Bay Packers to win the Super Bowl yesterday. Don’t get me wrong, I love the Steelers. The issue I had with their style was that they played inconsistently. Green Bay, on the other hand, demonstrated that internal spirit to be consistent on every play even though it was an unsuccessful one. In the end, consistency won the contest. It is the same with many things in life including taking medications as prescribed or following a treatment plan for as long as it takes to be healthy. It is not easy to do. It requires a lot of effort, and in order to succeed, it must be done.

Time and again I see patients taking multiple meds for sleeping disorders, blood pressure problems, diabetes, arthritis, obesity, acid reflux, etc. and they negate their progress to better health by choosing to maintain a destructive lifestyle. I see it every day. The diabetic patient on 4 or 5 different medications to control their diabetes and buying a box of candy bars with his meds, then goes to his car to consume 3 candy bars before leaving the parking lot, or the patient buying the asthma inhalers and on their way out purchasing two packs of cigarettes at the front and lighting up before driving away, etc.

Another example of inconsistent behavior in action is the timeliness of medication refills. By checking a patient’s medication refill history, I can tell how adherent the patient is being to their treatment plan. When performing medication therapy management for patients, this is one of the parameters I look at to give me insight on their attitude towards their treatment goals. Physicians rarely see this part of the patient’s behavior and mostly assume that the patient is being adherent to therapy. Time and again, patients come in with a new prescription for a more powerful medication to treat their health issues because of physician-perceived “treatment failure” from the prior medication. I know this when I look at refill histories on the prior medication. If the patient doesn’t take the first medication as prescribed for a chance of treatment success, how will they succeed with the second? And what about lifestyle changes to compliment the treatment plan’s goals? Some pharmacies now offer automatic refills to counteract this inconsistency, and in theory, it can be good thing; however, it is not the panacea to adherence. Patients want a “magic pill” or magic “technology” to solve their health problems, but such a pill or technology doesn’t exist – at least not yet. It exists in them and can be found by looking in the mirror. It all begins and ends with you, the patient, and what you do about your health care.

I know that this is sort of a “tough love” approach and I may be a little “preachy”, but we have to remember what is on the line….your health and the freedom to have the physical ability to maintain a robust lifestyle. And if you think that it is none of anyone’s business how you take care of yourself, you couldn’t be further from the truth. How you take care of yourself not only affects you, it affects everyone associated with you including your loved ones, friends, co-workers, city, county, state and even the country. Do yourself right by putting in the effort because in the end, wouldn’t you have liked to say, “I lived a full life”? Don’t forget to share your thoughts on this week’s blog to help us all improve ourselves.

Until next week, be well.
Dion