Four Tips on Medication Safety

The American Society on Aging recently published an article about medication safety tips for older adults. These tips are great to keep in mind when taking medication. The ASA’s first tip is “Take Medicine as Prescribed.” This can be done with the traditional seven day pill organizer, setting an alarm on an alarm clock or cell phone or it can be done by the medication dispenser that SimplyHome offers. With the medication dispenser, there are 28 slots for medicine. If the individual needs to take medicine multiple times per day, that is possible by setting up to four alarms per day. If the individual needs to take a certain medication only once a day, the person who fills the medication dispenser would only put that pill in the slot for the desired time. This would eliminate confusion as to whether the pill had been taken yet and would guarantee that the medication would be taken at the same time each day. By not having a medication dispenser, individuals run the risk of forgetting to take medication or taking medication more than prescribed on account of forgetting whether or not medication has been taken.

“Keep a Medication List” is the second tip by ASA. This is helpful even when having a medication dispenser. This will ensure that the person filling the slots has an accurate read and count on what needs to go in each slot when it is time to refill the dispenser.

The third tip on the list is “Be Aware of Potential Interactions.” This is something to discuss with a doctor. This could result in a dangerous situation but can easily be prevented by having a conversation with any and all of the individual’s doctors.

“Review Medications with Health Care Provider” is the fourth piece of advice given. In the same conversation with the doctors about interactions of different drugs it is also imperative that budget and needs are discussed. Being open and honest about what the individual’s priorities are is crucial.

The use of SimplyHome’s medication dispenser also combats the possibility of overdosing on medicines or taking medicines at unconventional times. The dispenser ensures that the individual is taking the proper medication at the proper time. Medication dispensers have the capability of a local announcement which can be a buzzer and/or a flashing light, an automated text and e-mail alert or access to a call center that would act as a reminder to take the medication.

http://asaging.org/blog/four-medication-safety-tips-older-adults

Take a look at our medication dispenser here!