While medications are intended to treat illnesses and infections, taking them requires correct monitoring. Individuals cannot just take medicines at liberty, as their contents can lead to harmful consequences when taken in excess or render them ineffective if taken insufficiently.
As a preferred partner in quality home care in and around Pingree Grove, Illinois, we encourage you to ensure that your aging loved ones are managing medications safely. Whether these are prescriptions, over-the-counter drugs, supplements, or herbal medicines, safety measures have to be practiced to promote safety and wellness.
Here are helpful tips to help you protect your loved one from the ill effects of incorrect medication:
- Follow Instructions as Prescribed
Medications that doctors prescribe to a patient include specific instructions such as the dosage and timing of administration. It also includes whether it should be stopped or continued after a display of a certain result. For prescriptions to work as expected, patients need to follow what their doctor or healthcare team exactly prescribes. More importantly, do not take prescription medication if it was not prescribed to you.
- Maintain a List of Medicines
Keeping a medication list is essential so you can ensure that the medicines you’re taking are precisely what you need. The list also helps you keep track of when medicines expire or require a refill. In addition to the medicine’s information, it’s also vital to include listing the symptoms and results that the patient experienced after taking the medicine. To help you in creating this list at home, a registered nurse from our team of caregivers in Illinois can provide home care services so that important matters like these are handled.
- Mind the Side Effects and Other Interactions
Medicines have potential side effects in certain conditions and these should be monitored. Side effects may complicate an existing physical ailment when these are not correctly addressed. Furthermore, some medicines have negative reactions with other substances such as alcohol, certain foods, or other drugs. Because of these possibilities, you should note potential interactions for your senior loved one. This information is typically on the bottle label of the medicine. If it is not, be sure to ask your loved one’s healthcare team.
- Talk About Your Medicine with Your Doctor
If you’re given a prescription, ensure that your doctor knows about the other medicines you’re taking, including over-the-counter drugs, vitamin/mineral supplements, or herbal drinks. As the head of your healthcare team, your physician is able to advise you as to whether these medications can react negatively or not to your prescriptions.
Helping your loved one in managing medication is part of the quality nursing care services that we provide at Passionate Private Duty. If your family member requires the assistance of registered nurses, our team of compassionate, trained caregivers is ready to help. Contact us to learn more.
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