Your Stories About Medications
How to recognize medication side effect and take action: Frances’ story, by her daughter Christine
In this video, Christine tells the story of her mother, Frances, whose health was affected by adverse effects related to her medications. Thanks to Christine's initiative and the collaboration of a healthcare professional, a deprescribing process was initiated, which helped improve Frances' quality of life.
We sincerely thank Christine for generously sharing Frances’ story with our Network.
Christine was a caregiver to her mother Frances, who lived in a long-term care facility. Christine had to help Frances address major side effects caused by her medications.
Christine was worried by significant changes she saw in her mother’s behavior and attitude. Frances’ quality of life was visibly deteriorating. Seeing the long list of medications her mother was taking, Christine decided to take action. She refused to believe that this was the normal process of aging. She asked for a complete review of Frances’ medications by a doctor.
After reviewing Frances' symptoms and medications, her doctor diagnosed her with tardive dyskinesia, a disfiguring and involuntary movement disorder that can involve movements of the tongue, jaw, trunk, or limbs. This condition was caused by an antipsychotic medication she was taking. This was not understood by staff or residents and Frances was mocked for her uncontrollable facial movements.
In collaboration with Frances’ care team, they began a gradual deprescribing process for that medication. After eleven months, the medication was successfully discontinued, and Frances’ condition improved: she had fewer uncontrollable movements and was able to move with more ease. However, some effects of the disorder were irreversible, leaving Frances with lasting impairments.
Christine has learned a lot from this experience. Above all, she knows how important it is to ask questions about her medications when they are first prescribed or when a new symptom appears. By sharing Frances’ story, she hopes others will more regularly ask: “Could this be caused by one of my medications?”
When Christine’s mother could no longer make healthcare decisions for herself, Christine stepped in as her caregiver – but it wasn’t easy to get the necessary medication changes without the proper legal authority.
If you’re caring for a loved one and may need to make medical decisions on their behalf, make sure you have the legal right to do so. In Canada, this typically requires a document such as a Power of Attorney for Personal Care, health care directive, or representation agreement, depending on your province or territory. These documents authorize you to access health information and make care decisions if your loved one becomes unable to do so. You can prepare one through a lawyer or by using resources available from your provincial or territorial government.
