Self-Care and OTCs Introduction

Study Notes

The text discusses the role of a pharmacist in self-care, which includes collecting subjective and objective data, assessing the information, planning an individualized care plan, implementing the plan, and following up to monitor and evaluate effectiveness.
During self-care consultations, pharmacists collect both subjective data (family history, personal and social history, review of systems, and medication history) and objective data (blood pressure, temperature).
After assessing the information, pharmacists evaluate the appropriateness of self-treatment, identify medication-related problems, set goals of therapy, engage patients in self-management, and ensure care continuity.
A unique aspect of self-care is the assessment of appropriateness, as some patients may not be candidates for self-treatment and may require referral to another healthcare provider.
Pharmacists develop an individualized patient-centered care plan, which may include recommending self-care with pharmacologic, nonpharmacologic, and complementary products, or referring the patient to another healthcare provider.
Plans should address medication-related problems, goals of therapy, patient engagement, and care continuity.
In assessing medication-related problems, pharmacists consider patient-specific and therapy-specific factors to determine the safest and most cost-effective option.
Goals of therapy should be realistic, observable, and measurable, and contain clinical parameters, laboratory values, and specific time frames.
Patient engagement involves educating patients and caregivers regarding the presenting illness and non-pharmacological measures, and encouraging self-management.
Care continuity requires follow-up, which includes teaching patients what to do if goals are not met or if adverse effects occur.
Pharmacists communicate goals of therapy, educate patients and caregivers, and provide referrals as necessary to implement the care plan effectively.
The pharmacist monitors and evaluates the effectiveness of the plan to modify it as needed.