Local Pharmacists Are Issuing A Wakeup Call For People Living With Chronic Illnesses

David Martinez, pharmacy manager of the Hyde Park Walgreens, is joining pharmacists across the city to issue a Wakeup Call reminding residents to take their medications as they are prescribed and to seek help from their pharmacists to overcome the obstacles that prevent them from doing so.
David Martinez, pharmacy manager of the Hyde Park Walgreens, is joining pharmacists across the city to issue a Wakeup Call reminding residents to take their medications as they are prescribed and to seek help from their pharmacists to overcome the obstacles that prevent them from doing so.

Local Pharmacists Are Issuing A Wakeup Call

For People Living With Chronic Illnesses

BY KATHERINE NEWMAN

In Illinois, roughly half of the population has been diagnosed with a chronic disease and approximately 50 percent of patients with a chronic illness fail

to take their daily medications as prescribed, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.

Additionally, a 2017 study published in the Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities found that prescription non-adherence is more common in neighborhoods that are predominantly African American which is why several pharmacists from the South Side of Chicago have come together to issue a Wakeup Call to their patients about the importance of prioritizing prescription adherence.

“Non-adherence is when patients don’t take their medication as prescribed by their health care provider and we can measure that by days of coverage, we can measure it by their refill rates, and it’s one of those numbers that’s actually tangible and can translate into outcomes,” said David Martinez, pharmacy manager of the Hyde Park Walgreens located at 1554 E. 55th St.

Pharmacists work as an extension of the patient care team and in many low-income areas, they are often one of the most easily accessible healthcare resources that is available.

“That’s one of the reasons why I became a pharmacist because there is no other healthcare provider in the entire system that’s more accessible than we are. We have no appointments, you can walk right up to the pharmacy counter and at my location, you can do that 24-hours a day,” said Martinez.

Another reason that pharmacists are at the front line of this Wakeup Call is their geographic proximity, according to Martinez.

“You can’t drive three blocks in Chicago without passing a Walgreens and there’s always a healthcare professional there.”

There are many different barriers that prevent people from taking their prescriptions as directed, including forgetfulness, disorganization, and uncertainty about side effects and potential reactions. With that in mind,

Martinez wants Hyde Park residents to know that the staff at his pharmacy, and pharmacies across the city, are there to help with those obstacles.

“Sometimes the pharmacists are more knowledgeable about the medications and how they interact with other medications than the actual doctor because we’re at the center of it all. A patient might see one specialist for a cardiovascular issue and then see an internist or a neurologist, but the pharmacist is the nexus of all of that,” said Martinez.

As part of the prescription adherence Wakeup Call, Walgreen’s pharmacists specifically are encouraging patients to utilize the technology that they provide to help remove the obstacles that prevent them from keeping up with their medications.

“When we talk about adherence, unfortunately just being forgetful about when to take your medications is a huge factor and with the Walgreens App you can set daily reminders for that and it will tell you when and how to take your medicine,” said Martinez.

Additionally, Walgreen’s has created ways for people who run on a tight schedule to avoid having to wait in line when picking up their prescriptions including home delivery and an express pick-up option.

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