Article / Updated 03-26-2016
Having Parkinson’s disease (PD) certainly doesn’t make you immune to accidents and ailments that can land you in a hospital — it may make a trip to the ER more likely, in fact. To make sure that a surprise trip to the emergency room (is there any other kind?) or a planned stay in the hospital doesn’t leave you worse off than before you went in, use the following tips:
Have copies of the following information ready; give them to the Admissions office, the doctors, and ER or floor staff:
Your neurologist’s contact information — phone, pager, e-mail, and fax info
Your doctor’s written instructions for stopping and starting your PD meds during ER or hospital treatment
A list of all prescription and over-ther-counter medications you currently take
A list of the red-flag medications that interact badly with PD meds, including antinausea dopamine agonists, gastrointestinal anticholinergics, antipsychotics, and postoperative pain-management drugs — Demerol in particular
Examine meds you are given in the hospital.