The Geriatric Patient and Long-term Care: An Opportunity and Challenge for Pharmacy

A significant interest in the elderly population has occurred over the last decade as evidenced by the increase in journals, journal articles, books, and research regarding the aged patient. This explosion of data concerning the elderly is essential since our educational background in disease process and therapy is generally learned from the young adult perspective. Additionally, the elderly patient represents a high-risk patient to health care professionals for a variety of reasons: (1) the elderly person has in many cases multiple chronic diseases; (2) has complicated, multiple drug regimens; (3) has an increased incidence of adverse drug reactions compared to younger adults; (4) exhibits atypical presenting symptoms of disease and adverse drug reactions; (5) is at risk for iatrogenic disease; and (6) is neglected generally due to negative stereotypical attitudes held by health care professionals. The elderly population, however, represents an opportunity for pharmacy services due to the increasing numbers of elderly, the opportunity to provide new, nontraditional, and innovative services, as well as the emergence of new practice areas of health care delivery for our elderly. Additionally, there is a need to enhance educational experiences in long-term care and conduct geriatric and gerontologic research in these settings.