Medical evacuations from oil rigs off the Gulf Coast of the United States from 2008 to 2012: reasons and cost implications.

Objective: To identify reasons for air medical evacuations from oil rigs/platforms.

Methods: Retrospective review of data of medical calls from 102 rigs/platforms in the US Gulf Coast from 2008 through 2012 with specific analysis of medevacs.

Results: On average, 1609 total calls per year relating to illness or injury on the 102 oil rigs/platforms with 4% to 7% requiring medical air evacuation.

Composition and cost of drugs stored at home by elderly patients.

Background: Elderly people often have multiple chronic diseases, are frequently treated by several physicians, and also use over-the-counter medications. Excessive prescribing, imperfect therapeutic adherence, treatment modifications after hospitalization, and oversized drug packages result in home storage of leftover drugs, resulting in a waste of healthcare resources.

Patients And Methods: All patients aged >/=75 years hospitalized for >24 hours during a 6-month period in an urban teaching hospital in Switzerland were eligible for inclusion in a study collecting sociodemographics, medical, functional, and psychosocial characteristics.