Medication Safety
Medication Safety
How you take your medicines has a big impact on how well you feel.
If you don’t take your medications as recommended, what could transpire? Primarily, your medicines may not work properly. This means you won’t get any benefit and your illness may get worse. Furthermore, you may experience side effects ranging from mild to severe.
Mountbatton Care can assist you in taking your medicines. Our care workers are completely trained to support you in all aspects of your medication, from a prompt to actually giving you your medicines. On this page, we have created a few simple tips to aid you manage your medicines and remain well.
Take your medicines at the right time, in the right way!
Take the time to absorb how and when to take your medicines and when to apply ointments. Some medication must be taken at night to be of benefit; others with food or on an empty stomach. Some medicines must not be taken at the same time as other particular medicines or types of foods as they may inadvertently interact.
You also need to be aware of any potential side effects and what to do if these happen.
Always read the information label with each medicine
Read the directives that come with your medicine and ensure that you comprehend them. If you are uncertain, get assistance from your pharmacist.
For each medicine, you should know:
- The name of the medicine
- What the medicine is supposed to do and how long it is likely to take before you see the effects. If you don’t think the medicine is working, tell your doctor
- How it should be taken and when it should be taken – and for how long
- What foods, drinks or other medicines should you avoid?
- What are the possible side effects? When should you call the doctor?
Ways to remember when to take your medicines
There are a number of things you can do to make sure you take the correct medication, in the right dose at the right time.
Get into a routine of taking your medicines at the same time each day. If you would like your care worker to remind you, ask the supervisor to include this in your care and support plan
Make a note to remind yourself or generate a chart showing when you need to take each medicine and how it must be taken. Use a colour coding system to differentiate the different times of the day. For example, yellow for morning, green for lunchtime, blue for dinnertime and red for bedtime. Recording each time you take your medicine on a simple medication log can help you to keep track of whether you have taken your medicines. If you have a care/support worker, these notes will help them to know when you are due another dose
If you frequently take several tablets each day, your pharmacist may be able to supply you with a monitored dosage system. This is a system that groups your tablets for each day in sealed containers
Set your mobile phone alarm or use timer caps for bottles that beep when it’s time to take a tablet.
Have your prescriptions reviewed
The number of medicines you need to take can seem overwhelming. Doctors may need to prescribe several medicines to treat different conditions and symptoms. If you are worried that you are taking too many, ask your GP to review your medicines.