2004N-0221 - Medicare Modernization Act Section 107(f) - Study on Making Prescription Pharmaceutical Information Accessible for Blind and Visually-Impaired Individuals; Establishement of Docket

  


  

  


  

  


  

  


  

  
FDA Comment Number : 
  

  
EC15
  



  

  

  



  

  
Submitter : 
  

  
Mrs. Catherine Gaffney
  

  
Date & Time: 
  

  
07/07/2004 06:07:48
  



  

  
Organization : 
  

  
Mrs. Catherine Gaffney
  



  

  
Individual Consumer
  


  

  
Category : 
  


  

  
Issue Areas/Comments 
  


  

  



  

  
 B. Information About the Use of Prescription Medication Information By People Who Are Blind or Visually-Impaired

  


  

  


  

  


  

  


  

  


  

  



  

  
1. How do people who are blind and visually-impaired currently get their prescription drug information?
  


  

  



  

  
 I have to have someone read it to me.  Sometimes I can look up some information about the medication through the internet.  I line them up in the order that I will be taking them and have to remember how much of each pill I need to take.

  


  

  


  

  


  

  
4c. What types of medication errors are most common among people who are blind or visually impaired?
  


  

  



  

  
People would be taking the wrong dosage or wrong pill at the wrong time, especially if the medications feel the same or are the same color.
  


  

  


  

  
3. How can essential drug information be effectively communicated to people who are blind or visually impaired?
  


  

  



  

  
 The best way for people who are blind to find out what is written on their prescription is to have it read electronically with a recorded message. The next would be have it written in braille, although many people with vision loss cannot read braille.