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Glossary > Prescription Drugs

Prescription Drugs

Prescription drugs are used to heal and prevent various diseases and disorders in your bodies. Each and everyday thousands of people go to hospitals and clinics to seek medication over different illnesses. Some patients will follow the doctor’s prescription while others will only take the prescription drugs up to when they get well. Others will use the prescribed drugs for other purposes other than what the doctor prescribed which is very dangerous this is referred to as prescription drug abuse.

It is important for people to learn about prescription medications that is their uses and how to handle them. People should also be enlightened on the go-ahead of acquiring prescription medicine.

What Are Prescription Drugs?

Prescription drugs are drugs that have to be legally prescribed by a doctor or a physician. These drugs, unlike cocaine and marijuana, are given in hospitals or sold in pharmacies. These prescription drugs are used for suppressing depression, healing diseases such as asthma, and stimulating the body among other functions. 

Who Prescribes Prescription Drugs?

Whenever we get ill there is that physician that we always go to for example when we have a flu. This certified doctor or nurse at the primary care level can prescribes drugs to you. Private Doctors often rely on certified nurses whom they have employed and they help in prescription of drugs. A psychiatrist or a certified mental health nurse can prescribe mental health medication too. Clinical pharmacists, dentists, optometrists and veterinarians are allowed to prescribe drugs in their specific area of expertise.

7 Components Of A Medication Order 

A complete medication order must have the following components;

  1. Patient’s name
  2. Name of drug
  3. Dosage
  4. Administration rules
  5. Frequency and time for drug administration
  6. Date of medication order
  7. Signature of physician organizing for the medication order 

Types Of Prescription Drugs

  • Anti-Convulsant Drugs - They are used in curing bipolar and epilepsy. They usually suppress the quick outbursts of neurons in the body hence reducing epileptic seizures.
  • Anti-Fungal Drugs - These are used to treat fungal infections like; candidiasis, ringworms, yeast infections, athlete’s foot and other serious fungal infections. They come in various forms such as creams, tablets, capsule, liquids and injections.
  • Antibiotics - These drugs are used to treat bacterial infections and other parasites like fungi and protozoa. There are two types of antibiotics; Bacteriostatic which prevent bacteria from multiplying and bactericidal which kill bacteria. They are found in form of tablets, injection and powder.
  • Antiviral Drugs - They are used to control or treat viral infections such as; Influenza, hepatitis, herpes and HIV viruses. They do not kill the viruses but they prevent their multiplication in the body.
  • Anti-Diabetic Drugs - These drugs reduce the risks of diabetes in the body by controlling the amount of glucose in the body. These drugs help regulate the levels of sugar in patients with diabetes. They are found in form of injection, oral and herbal drugs.
  • Anti-Malarial Drugs - These are medicines that treat or prevent Malaria. They are found in form of tablets, injections and capsules. Examples of these drugs include Quinine and Chloroquine.
  • Anti-Asthmatic Drugs - These are used to treat or control asthma attacks. They come in form of pills, powder, sprays and liquids.
  • Anti-Insomnia Drugs - These simply help people with difficulty in sleeping normalize their sleeping patterns. They are used occasionally and are not used longer than two weeks.

Prescription Drug Abuse

Prescription medication may be misused in various ways such as; taking a drug to get high or taking another person’s medicine even if you have similar illness. Some of the drugs that are often abused are depressants, stimulants and opioids. In the last 10 years an increase in prescription medicine abuse has been noted. Misuse of these drugs can lead to addiction and also death in case of overdose.

A high rate of medicine abuse is recorded among teenagers compared to adults. However about 80% of adults of between 60-85 years use a prescription drug on daily basis. Every prescription drug usually has its side effects on your body and any physician prescribing the drug to you has to consider the side effects so if the drugs are misused, they may cause a lot of harm. If prescription drug abuse is identified earlier, it can be suppressed hence preventing an addiction.

Prescription medication is administered in various forms and can only be given by a certified physician. Prescription medicine have got very many important uses as seen above and they can only be of help if used according to the doctor’s prescription.

When seeking medical assistance, people should always be encouraged to go to legal physicians so that they are given prescriptions that are helpful to them all the time. Parents should monitor their children when taking prescription medication to ensure they don’t misuse them and especially teenagers because at that age children usually like to explore everything.