Chapter 5 - The Medication Records Did Not Match
Grandpa called his longtime physician before anyone called lawyers.
Then a geriatric pharmacologist.
Then Mom’s doctors.
Within forty-eight hours, we had three versions of her medication history.
That was the problem.
The electronic medical record showed one set of prescribed doses.
The pharmacy dispensation record showed another timeline.
The pill organizers in the mansion contained a third.
Not wildly different.
Subtly different.
Enough to affect alertness.
Blood pressure.
Balance.
Memory.
One medication had been increased, then reduced, then increased again within six weeks.
Another sedating medication had been renewed after the prescribing doctor believed Mom had stopped taking it.
Who requested the refill?
Vanessa.
Who reported worsening nighttime agitation?
Vanessa.
Who told the doctor Mom had become verbally combative?
Vanessa.
None of us had ever heard Mom become combative.
The physician had assumed the caregiver report was accurate.
Why wouldn’t he?
Vanessa lived in the house.
Presented herself as the primary medication manager.
Spoke confidently.
Used medical vocabulary.
Mom, meanwhile, sometimes struggled to remember whether breakfast happened at eight or nine.
The power difference was enormous.
The doctors were not conspiring.
They were operating on bad information.
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And Vanessa had learned how to supply it.
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