Beleive it or not, just three drugs are responsible for a third of all serious adverse reactions in elderly patients the Annals of Internal Medicine, 2007 reported. The drugs warfarin, insulin and digoxin were more than 35 times more dangerous than any of the other 40 plus drugs identified as being likely to be hazardous to older people.

In the study, these three drugs accounted for 59,000 of the 177,000 cases of adverse drug reactions among older people that are reported by hospital emergency departments across America every year. Bleeding was, perhaps not surprisingly, the most common reaction to warfarin, while hypoglycemia that resulted in seizures and/or unconsciousness was realted to insulin in almost every case.

These three drugs feature in the 'Beers list', that lists every major drug group that is known to pose a danger to older patients. Researchers who studied the findings reckon that even minor adjustments to the prescriptions, and the monitoring of aptient on this medication could potentially markedly reduce the numbers of pateints harmed by the drugs.

This is an area that we fall down on in society a lot I think. Elderly people are always being overlooked for everything from heating to housing. I think it must be horrible to be helpless, old and needing help and be at the mercy of people who have your life in their hands. If we imagine that and how we would feel in those circumstances then maybe we might be a little more caring and aware of what life is like for vulnerable elderly people.

Yes Peggy9, I think you are right as we can only feel the pain and helplessness of elders by assuming ourselves in those circumstances. All elders are not lucky also so that they can get support of their family. They comes to care homes and nursing homes to have a fair care from the caregivers and nurses but there also they get cheated and sometimes get hurt also.

Thats is exactly it, Kevin a lack of empathy and, it seems, a complete denial that we all, God willing, will be old one day and need help! While caring for children and babies is appealing and no one minds changing their diapers and cleaning up after them, it is a completely different thing with a older adult. But we need to remember, that we will be that older person one day!