Can a regular medical doctor prescribe anxiety medication? Or does this require a psychiatrist?
Yes, technically any physician (MD, DO, NP, or even PA) with prescribing abilities can prescribe something for anxiety. However, many physicians are not comfortable prescribing psychiatric medications. You say you "might not be able to see a psychiatrist until January" which suggests you've looked into, but not scheduled, an appointment. Many providers would be more comfortable starting you on something knowing that you have an upcoming appointment with a psychiatrist. When you do see someone, be sure to let them know about the supplements you have been taking to help with your anxiety.I suggest talking with your Primary Care Physician about this, if you have one. If you don't, I highly suggest getting one. Having an established relationship with a provider makes them more comfortable prescribing for you. Walking in to your local Urgent Care (or ER, for that matter) & asking someone you've never seen before for psychiatric medications usually doesn't go too well. If you're wondering why this is, it's because the most commonly prescribed meds for anxiety (SSRI's) take 8-12 weeks to really reach full effect and there is a small risk of increased suicidality when you first start. Drugs like Ativan or Xanax (for short term relief of anxiety symptoms) have a very high street value, and few providers are willing to write these for someone they've just met for the first time.
How do I refill a prescription if I don't have a doctor?
The number of authorized refill should be indicated on each prescription by the doctor. In case , no refill Information is provided, it is understood that no refill have been authorized.If the medicine contains habit forming drugs such as Narcotics then refill is valid for 6 months if it has been authorized by the doctor.If the medicine doesn't contain any habit forming drugs then validity of prescription remains for one year with proper refill information.Thank YouMaithili
Can doctors catch if I don't take the medicine he prescribed and I lie?
Can doctors catch if I don't take the medicine he prescribed and I lie?It depends on the medication, and the scenario in which it is prescribed. Blood levels can be obtained for certain medications, and if it isn’t present in the blood, obviously you haven’t been taking it.Also, one of the reasons a patient might be hospitalized is to see exactly how a patient responds when it is known that the meds are being taken (dispensed by nurse and patient watched to see if it is ingested). This can happen if it seems like the patient is not responding to increased doses of medications or not responding to a variety of meds.However, as Pramodhi Premasiri noted in her answer, why would you do this? What a waste of your money and time. In addition, if you suddenly decide to take the medication, you may have a terrible reaction if taken at the escalated dosage (this happens a lot—usually comes about in the setting of the hospitalization I talked about above). And thirdly, when you get caught, your credibility with your doctor will have been destroyed. Many primary care doctors will order previous records. You will always have a cloud of suspicion hanging over your head and you may find that receiving proper care from physicians much more difficult in the future.
Can a doctor tell if I picked up my prescription?
The answer is yes and no. While all computer systems at all pharmacies keep a record of every transaction, the only way the doctor would know would be if he or she contacted the pharmacy. When it comes to controlled substances things change a bit. Due to DEA regulations every time you fill a prescription for a controlled substance a second record is kept in order to stop ‘doctor shopping’ and also in order to stop you from filling controlled substances at different pharmacies. I don’t know the exact algorithm but once there is a ‘hit’ in this system, the DEA has the right to call the prescribing doctor. In addition, if a pharmacist feels uncomfortable about filling a certain prescription he or she will call the prescribing doctor. BUT, as a general rule, a physician will simply not know if you have filled a prescription UNLESS he accesses the system where he can see all medicines filled by his patients. This occurs quite INFREQUENTLY due to time constraints that most physicians have. DK
Can regular doctors prescribe anti-anxiety medications?
Yes they can. I had overwhelming anxiety. It turned out to be my use of Splenda. Yup Splenda. I like to say sucralose, not Splenda, because that is what Splenda is. And it is in a lot of stuff. The package doesn't have to say Splenda to have sucralose in it. You have to read labels. So, you might still be using it and don't even know it! Sucralose is poison. It ruined five years of my life. I had a laundry list of medical problems while taking it, including overwhelming anxiety, depression, mood swings, insomnia and more. Go ahead, google: anxiety splenda or anxiety sucralose or insomnia splenda or insomnia sucralose The slogan, "Made from sugar..." is very misleading. Splenda might be made from sugar, but it is far from sugar. The resulting chemical is an organochloride (chlorocarbon). Organochlorides are typically poisons. carbon monoxide - made from oxygen so its like a breath of fresh air
Can you ask your doctor to prescribe you a certain medicine or do they have to prescribe it themselves?
You can always give your doctor a heads up on what medicatos have done well to you. If you mean and former controlled sustances—forget that, they are being withdrawn frompatients in large numers, and they will not bugde. I think it would make the doctor’s help to make a better informed decision on what drugs to put you on if you tod them past successes and symptom cure or palliation. Remember—the doctor is not to be in charge of you—they a just a part of the medical and hospital team that YOU have the right to also participate in and give feedback. I would ask questions regarding any different therapies or drugs with less side effects that may allow you to function when you go back home or to work. Don’t be afraid to speak up—your doctor is probably making rounds on his patients on your floor ad may seem in a hurry. Slow him down and get what you need ordered or questioned. Make sure a nurse is near to write down the order, as she may be writing it as a verbal order, or he may do his own. Health care is no longer what it used to be, and patient’s are becoming more pro-active and educated. Patients are now seen as consumers, and not those to e given true “Hospitality” which is what “hospital” derives from. YOU are in the ultimate responsibility for your health given competent staff. Ask as much as you like, collaborate with past problems and solutions, and make sure, when at home, you make a booklet for each family member with their medications, dosages and times to take, Include vitamins and also your past medical history and allergies—they will love it—but always seem to lose it—have copies. Don’t let anyone intimidate you into doing something you do not want to do—tell them you will think about it when/if your significant other comes. Don’t ask for opioids, but certainly describe your symptoms. Once again, have few expectations they will be prescribed.
Is your doctor notified if you don't pick up a prescription?
I was wondering if you get a prescription from your doctor and turn it into the pharmacy but then decide not to pick it up if your doctor is notified? I have a check up appointment soon and I just wanted to know because my doctor might ask why I didn't pick up my prescription...and that was close to two months ago.
Prescription medication privacy?
I almost didn't answer this until I saw some of the answers got a "thumbs down" and I couldn't figure out why. All these answers are correct. Federal law forbids your doctor from disclosing any medical information or your pharmacist from telling anyone about your perscriptions--UNLESS you signed a release. This is forbidden by the HIPAA laws. I've been married 30 years and I cannot get medical information about my wife without her permission. I don't even open mail from her doctor. This is a serious violation of federal law. I'm also a local government attorney who deals with HIPAA laws. If one of my employees calls in sick, I can't even ask him/her what the medical problem is. The best I can do is ask if he/she thinks they'll be in tomorrow. We cannot ask prospective employees if they have a disability even if it's obvious. We may ask if they require special accomodations, however.
Can your new doctor see if your old doctor prescribed you Xanax if you didn’t have an insurance to fill it for the first prescription?
Every prescription for a controlled substance that you fill is entered into a database. Using that, I can view what the prescription was for, which physician wrote it, what day it was written, what day you picked it up from the pharmacy, and which pharmacy you picked it up from. I can search results for you in any state.Pretty neat, huh? Most people who try to misuse prescription drugs don’t realize that doctors can find out EVERYTHING about what you have previously been prescribed.Physicians have to do that because we have to deal with people trying to obtain controlled substances from multiple physicians.As another poster stated, your new doctor will very likely require a transfer of records from your old doctor, which will also allow him to see your prescription history and whether or not you made what would be an alarming number of requests for controlled substances to your previous physician. Any doctor that sees a new patient that has NOT released their prior medical records but is asking for a controlled substance is going to be hesitant to prescribe it until they see what the person has been treated with previously.Lastly, sometimes pharmacies will see red flags in a person’s prescription history and then contact your physician regarding them. I have been contacted by a pharmacy because they tried to fill a prescription from me soon after filling a prescription from a different physician. I have also gotten a warning from a pharmacy when a patient’s parents (I am a pediatrician) had me switch his ADHD medication but then tried to fill a saved prescription for the OLD medication at a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT pharmacy chain, despite that they paid cash for that prescription. The medication is usually run through your insurance as soon as it comes through to the pharmacy so that, the doctor can be notified if there is an issue with the prescription that can prevent it from being filled. Your insurance will have a record of that, regardless of whether you ultimately paid cash for it, and will notify your physician.Physicians are responsible for the appropriate use of their prescriptions for controlled substances, and we take this VERY seriously. Not mentioning a previous prescription for Xanax to your new physician does, indeed, constitute lying and is an easy way to get dismissed as a patient. He isn’t required to keep you as a patient. I have myself dismissed a number of patients from my practice due to misuse of prescriptions for controlled substances.
Does Medicaid write prescriptions?
I can’t find my medication for Prozac from about 6 years ago . I checked my pharmacy and it’s simply not listed, does insurance companies cover stuff like this? Sorry I’m not familiar with medication and health records as you can see .