MEN’S HEALTH


healthcare professional is aware of the problem.


So why are men so poor when it comes to volunteering information about their ill health? The reasoning for this is somewhat unclear, however there are some strongly indicated reasons for this particular behavior, some of which are related to the male psyche, and others which are related to practical issues. Firstly, in come cases, a male seeking help from a pharmacist or doctor may be seen as a sign of weakness, and a reduction in that person’s machismo. In addition to this, and often as a related point, many males adopt the opinion that if they ignore their particular condition, it will go away, or get better of its own volition. While this is true in some instances, this outlook can raise a couple of important issues:


• If the condition is self-limiting, they could have received treatment and advice that would have made the resolution of the condition much faster, reducing the time the patient was unwell


• If the condition is serious or chronic, it can often be more easily managed or resolved if it is reported early, whilst waiting for a period of time for the condition to improve can lead to a worsening or complication of the condition.


Another issue that can prevent men from speaking to a healthcare professional about their ailments can be straightforward ignorance, which is related to the above factors. For example, if a male regularly chooses not to visit the doctor or pharmacist, the last time they may have been in a practice might have been when their parents brought them there as a child. As a result, these men may not know how to make an appointment,


what to do when they get to there, or what to expect during a consultation. Whilst these particular issues seem somewhat inconsequential, they are all barriers to these patients, and can prevent men seeking the wide range of help available to them. In reality, the reasons for males not seeking health advice take all forms and levels of difficulty in addition to the ones mentioned here, and can be related to complex psychological factors, and also practical ones, such as working hours and other aspects which make obtaining help more difficult.


So what can we do as pharmacists to try and improve the culture of men not seeking help for their conditions? This is a more complicated question than can be answered in an article such as this, however, there are a couple of main areas which can and need to be improved, some of which are easier than others. These include increasing awareness of the advice that we pharmacists can provide to male patients about their illnesses, increased signposting of other areas of help and advice, and also actively engaging with our male patients to ensure that all of their worries have been alleviated, and that they are aware of the severity of certain conditions. The use of resources in the pharmacy such as printed information, digital resources, and even the appropriate use of consultation rooms will allow men to learn more about their conditions, and also to develop a more positive and comfortable opinion about healthcare provision, encouraging them to avail of it more in the future. Another area of major importance from this aspect is that pharmacists should be highly knowledgeable in the areas of male health, both with respect to providing advice, but also providing treatment where available. This article will


cover a couple of the more common conditions which can afflict men, and provide details on how pharmacy can play a vital role in the management of these disorders.


PROSTATE PROBLEMS


Some of the most common complaints which are exclusive to men are those which affect the prostate, and specifically include Prostatitis, Prostate Cancer (which affects 1 in 11 men in Scotland2


) and Benign


Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) (which around 43% of men over the age of 65 in Scotland suffer from3 of these cases, enlargement of the


TABLE 1. SOME OF THE COMMON SYMPTOMS OF CONDITIONS AFFECTING THE PROSTATE4 Condition


Prostatitis Chills Fever


Pain in the lower back, genital area and penis


Symptom Body aches Painful ejaculation Nausea 18 - SCOTTISH PHARMACIST BPH Poor urine stream Hesitancy on urination


Dribbling on finishing urination


Increased urinary frequency


Increased urgency to urinate


A feeling of incomplete emptying


.


Prostate Cancer Poor urine stream


Hesitancy on urination Dribbling on finishing urination Increased urinary frequency Increased urgency to urinate A feeling of incomplete emptying


When it comes to the management of these conditions, many of them will be treated with the use of prescription only treatments, and as such the pharmacist will need be involved in the provision of advice about these drugs,


). In all


prostate gland (which is responsible for the production of some of the constituents of seminal fluid) occurs, leading to problems with passing urine amongst other symptoms. Table 1 provides some more information about the symptomatic presentation of these conditions.


As can be seen from these symptoms, there can often be a great degree of difficulty in differentiating between BPH and Prostate Cancer, and as a result, it’s best to question male patients in a full but discreet manner about their symptoms, and to refer on for further investigation if you suspect a more sinister pathology. In most cases, investigations such as Prostate Specific Antigen testing, Digital Rectal Examination, and Prostate Biopsy are commonly employed to make a solid diagnosis, and it’s important that pharmacists be aware of these tests so that they can put their patient’s mind at ease, and stress the importance of actually receiving these tests.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56