Being a mom and a wife and of course a daughter, I have long been a caregiver in some capacity. My own health has really always been good, until earlier this year and I had to deal with having my gallbladder removed. Around the same time, I was also dealing with a family member who was going through cancer treatment. These events both brought to light how easy it could be to mix medications that could cause a potentially lethal reaction.
According to FDA there are more than 100,000 deaths due to adverse drug reactions and the annual cost of adverse drug reactions is $136 Billion dollars. What is even scarier than that? 50% of the 4.4 billion prescription medications that are dispensed in the United States are not taken correctly by patients. That is really mind blowing if you think about it. How many medications do you take a day? Most of us probably only take one or two, if that. But many people, especially those of us who have parents that go through things like cancer treatments, must deal with lists of medications and the stress and worry of what could go wrong.
So what if there was a simple way to people recognize medication interactions which include over the counter products? MyRxProfile is an app that can easily help people manage over the counter and prescription medications and interactions with other medications by checking drug information and interactions with a simple scan of a barcode or typing your Rx prescription information. MyRxProfile allows you to email your profile directly to your doctor too. Most of us don’t leave the house without our smartphones, so having an app like this could be a lifesaver for doctor appointments, medical emergencies, or even just everyday medication needs.
The app allows me to save multiple profiles at once, so I am able to not only keep up with my own medications if I am taking them, but also my parent’s medications if I need to help them through hospital visits, surgeries, or things like the cancer treatments. And for those of us who don’t take much on a regular basis, but might take something for pain like Tylenol, there is a new feature that alerts you if you are combining “like” ingredients, such as acetaminophen. Did you know that there are over 600 prescription medications that contain acetaminophen?
The MyRxProfile app is simple and easy to use. You can check for drug interactions with a simple swipe of your phone and scan of a bar code. People shouldn’t have to second-guess whether or not they can take medications together. MyRxProfile has taken out the guesswork – and made it simple for everyone!
Available on iOS and Android. For more information on MyRxProfile, visit MyRxProfile.com, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
