Dispensing and Prescribing Cautions for Medical Care During Recovery From Alcohol and Drug Addiction

Abstract

Alcoholics and addicts who are recovering may find that prescription and nonprescription drugs can be stumbling blocks to recovery unless they have appropriate counseling and drug therapy management. Pharmacists can use their knowledge of pharmacy, pharmacology, and physiology to help patients avoid relapse to active alcoholism or addiction. They can serve as patient mediators with busy prescribers. In patient counseling, pharmacists can differentiate between passing and life-threatening symptoms, explain drug-free or drug-minimum alternatives, and generally supplement the tools and principles patients receive in their mutual support groups.