What are medication-related problems?  

"Medication-Related Problem" is a term defined in 1990 to include 8 types of medication-related problems, one of which is adverse drug reaction. The 8 types of medicated related problems can be grouped into the categories below: 

    1. Underuse of medications

• Untreated indications. The patient has a medical problem that requires drug therapy but is not receiving a drug for that indication or condition. 

• Subtherapeutic dosage. The patient has a medical problem and is taking too little of the correct medication. 

    2. Overuse of medications  

• Drug use without indication. The patient is taking a medication without a valid indication or reason for use.

• Overdosage. The patient has a medical problem that is being treated with too much of the correct medication.

    3. Use of inappropriate medications  

•  Improper drug selection. The patient has a drug indication but is taking the wrong drug, or is taking a drug that is not the most appropriate for the special needs of the senior patient. 

    4. Lack of adherence to drug therapy (patient non-compliance)  

• Failure to receive medication. The patient has a medical problem that is the result of not receiving a medication due to economic, psychological, sociological, or pharmaceutical reasons.   

    5. Adverse drug reactions, including drug interactions 

• Adverse drug reactions. The patient has a medical problem that is the result of an adverse drug reaction or adverse effect.

• Drug interactions. The patient has a medical problem that is the result of a drug-drug, drug-food, or drug-laboratory test interaction.

    Definition of above terms 

• A side-effect is an extension of the usual effect of the drug (e.g. drowsiness with Benadryl^© (diphenhydramine) is a side-effect if you are treating allergies).

• A side-effect is one type of adverse drug reaction. Other types include allergic reactions and those reactions specific to an individual. 

• An adverse drug reaction event is any patient injury resulting from use of a drug, whether due to an adverse drug reaction or a medication error.

Some adverse drug reactions do not result in injury to a patient, but may just be a minor annoyance.

Medication error is a separate term with its own definition. The National Coordinating Council on Medication Error Reporting and Prevention has a standard definition.  

Many of these terms overlap but they each have distinct meanings.