Older Adult Toolkit
Older Adult Toolkit
This toolkit aims to educate older adults about safe medication practices and how to be their own healthcare advocate.
Getting Started
The Generation Rx Older Adult Toolkit is designed to offer helpful information about appropriate medication use for older adults and their caregivers. The toolkit resources provide tips for getting the best results from medications and how to avoid medication-related problems.
Ready to go? Follow these three steps:
Step 1: Explore the key messages
featured in the GenRx Older Adult Toolkit.
Step 2: Review our program recommendations
to help you plan an effective educational program.
Step 3: Browse the available toolkit resources
to build and deliver a Generation Rx program itinerary that aligns with your program goals.
Step 1: Explore Key Messages
The Generation Rx Older Adult Toolkit expands on Generation Rx key messages to focus on three main themes:
- Be your own health advocate – you are the most important part of your healthcare team. Take the time to become an expert!
- Learn safe medication practices – only take medicines as directed by your healthcare professionals, store them securely, and safely dispose of them when no longer needed.
- Know the risks of medication misuse – drug misuse affects us all – find out how you can help.
Step 2: Program Recommendations
Audience
This toolkit is appropriate for universal audiences that include older adults and their caregivers. Common settings to host a program include senior centers, local extension agencies, independent living facilities, retirement communities, local health organizations, community libraries, and faith-based organizations.
Venue
We recommend venues with flexible furniture layouts to support small group discussions and active learning. Note the venue’s available technology, as some resources are in PPT format; each toolkit resource offers suggestions for adapting delivery if technology is limited.
Group Size
The ideal group size is 25 or fewer participants, as it helps maximize interaction between facilitators and participants, which is key for implementing prevention education. If you need to engage large groups, the “Safe Medication Practices for Better Health” PPT presentation adapts well.
Step 3: Toolkit Resources
This toolkit includes two primary activities: a presentation and a trivia game, each designed to take about 30 minutes to complete. The various supplemental worksheets can complement the presentation or game.
A typical GenRx Older Adult program includes:
1 Opening
by making introductions to welcome participants; consider watching the Safe Medication Practices for Better Health Video
2 Delivering
your selected activities and supplemental worksheets
3 Wrapping up
Primary Activities
Safe Medication Practices for Better Health presentation
Safe Medication Practices for Better Health Trivia game
Supplemental Worksheets
Medication Record Worksheet
Storage and Disposal Plan
Questions to Ask Your Pharmacist
Sample program itineraries
Our research suggests that delivering either the presentation or the trivia game in a single stand-alone program is equally effective; thus, we suggest selecting the activity that best meets the needs of the audience or the comfort of the facilitator.
- Program 1: Present slides 1 – 15 from the Safe Medication Practices for Better Health Presentation (PPT) and complete the Medication Record worksheet (both print and digital versions are available)
- Program 2: Present slides 16 through the end of the slide deck from the Safe Medication Practices for Better Health Presentation (PPT); also, complete the Storage and Disposal Plan (PDF) worksheet and Questions to Ask Your Pharmacist Worksheet (PDF)
- Program 3: Play the Safe Medication Practices for Better Health Trivia Game (PPT)
Use the Safe Medication Practices trivia game as a conversation starter at tabling events. Print the Trivia Questions Guide (PDF), select questions relevant to your audience, and offer small prizes (e.g., pill organizers, magnifiers, pill splitters) for participation. This activity helps engage participants with key messages from the toolkit and provides an opportunity to share the Older Adult Presentation Handout (PDF) as a reference.
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Questions about this toolkit?
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