OPPC Archives - OnePoint Patient Care

Blog Archive

Are Eye Vitamins Safe to Stop in Hospice Patients?

Generally speaking, the use of vitamins at end of life is not beneficial. Still, hospice patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) might be reluctant to stop taking their eye vitamins out of fear of going blind during their final months of life. AMD is a degenerative disease that damages the macula (the central portion of […]

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Considerations for Phenazopyridine Use in Hospice Patients

Phenazopyridine (Pyridium) is a urinary analgesic that’s been around for over 100 years.1-3 In fact, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) considers it a “grandfathered” drug, so safety and efficacy data from clinical trials is limited and its therapeutic role is based primarily on clinical observations.1,2 It’s solely a urinary analgesic (through an unknown mechanism) […]

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Guidance on Converting from Divalproex Sodium (Depakote) to Valproic Acid

As hospices operate with limited funds, minimizing drug costs is important. Therapeutic substitution, where one drug is replaced with a less expensive drug, is one tool to help with this. One substitution we’re occasionally asked about is using valproic acid (VPA) (Depakene) in place of divalproex sodium (Depakote). VPA costs about half as much as […]

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Rectal Drug Administration at End of Life

The oral route is by far the most popular and convenient means of drug administration, even in the hospice setting. However, for various reasons (e.g., dysphagia, nausea / vomiting, bowel obstruction, obtundation) as many as 70% of hospice patients will need their medications to be administered by non-oral routes.a-c Rectal drug administration is probably done […]

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ALS Symptom and Disease Management in Hospice

ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is an incurable progressive neurodegenerative disorder that leads to weakness, spasticity, and incoordination of the muscles involved in speaking, swallowing, breathing, and ambulation. Background1-4 Its onset most often occurs between the ages of 40 and 70, with a median survival time of 30 months, but […]

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Best Practices for Drug Administration via Enteral Tubes

Occasionally, hospice clinicians may encounter patients with enteral feeding tubes (FTs). These tubes are used to provide enteral nutrition (EN) in individuals with a functioning GI tract who are otherwise unable to be fed orally.1 There are numerous types of tubes out there which are generally classified by insertion site and where in the body […]

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Together as One: Vantage Hospice

Our “Together as One” series spotlights hospice programs, nurses, physicians, pharmacists and others who positively impact the lives of hospice patients and their families every day. Through the dedicated and compassionate work of these inspiring professionals, patients receive the high-quality care and attentive consideration they deserve. Together, they create the network of support so essential […]

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Handling Drug-induced QTc Interval Prolongation in Hospice

If you’ve ever used software that checks for drug interactions, you’ve come across alerts regarding QT interval prolongation. But you work in hospice…are these still significant and what can you do about them? Let’s start with some basics1 -6: QT interval – a measure of ventricular repolarization in the heart QTc interval – QT interval […]

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Together as One: Sage Family of Companies

Our “Together as One” series spotlights hospice programs, nurses, physicians, pharmacists and others who positively impact the lives of hospice patients and their families every day. Through the dedicated and compassionate work of these inspiring professionals, patients receive the high-quality care and attentive consideration they deserve. Together, they create the network of support so essential […]

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How do I convert from brexpiprazole to aripiprazole?

Earlier this year, the FDA expanded the list of approved indications for brexpiprazole (Rexulti®) to include the treatment of dementia-related agitation due to Alzheimer’s disease, making it the first antipsychotic (or any drug class for that matter) to gain FDA approval for treating agitation in patients with any type of dementia. Despite its new approval, […]

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