Safe Medication Practices At Home

As a nurse-mom, I would like to give health teachings such as this because I can read online that there are a lot of moms are confused as to how to safe medication practices. 

1. Pay attention to your doctors. If you cannot read their handwriting, ask them. I know these days, doctor's orders are already printed in prescription papers. But please ask them everything about the medicines.

2. Follow the doctor's orders. Just because you do not experience pain anymore or you are already getting better, YOU WILL STOP TAKING MEDICINES especially ANTIBIOTICS. You need to follow how many days it should be given. Why? To effectively kill the bacteria.

3. DO NOT SELF MEDICATE. Unless you know what your symptoms are, and you have a standing order then go. What is standing order? Usually, standing orders are fever medications and go like this:

• GIVE PARACETAMOL FOR TEMPERATURE ABOVE 38 degrees Celsius and above every 4hours. Other than that, PLEASE DON'T especially for children.
• GIVE Insulin 2 units subcutaneously for blood sugar above 140mg/dl.

4. NOT ALL SYMPTOMS are the same. This is the reason why you need to see your doctors. Not all cough is JUST coughing. In our profession, we characterize lung sounds and different lung sounds means different DIAGNOSIS. Hindi ibig sabihin na umuubo anak ni kumare ay pareho na kayo ng sakit.

5. Please always check medicines for their expiry dates. Stored opened medicines like antibiotics should be thrown away, chances are, they are not as effective anymore.

6. SOCIAL MEDIA is NOT AN ONLINE CLINIC. Health teaching is different from asking for a medical diagnosis. We cannot seek for an online prescription because medical professionals cannot ASSESS patients properly ONLINE. Assessing entails the use of five senses, something that cannot be done virtually and remotely. 

What does RIGHT DOSE mean?

Proper dose is based on a lot of factors. It is based on height, weight, and age of an individual. It is also crucial, especially to babies and children. 

It simply means the right amount of medicine to give the patients. If the doctor's order is 0.6cc you have to give the exact amount because it is specifically for the patient. 

What you need to do is use a syringe (please remove needle) in order to obtain a proper dose. You can buy this one in a drug store. 

Please do not use household items like a spoon because it varies sizes so most likely, you will not get an accurate dose. 

When measuring medicine, do it at eye level for accuracy.

RIGHT ADMINISTRATION

It is the proper way of giving medicines to patients. 

There are different routes as to where we give medicines. 

➡️ORAL (mouth)

➡️OTIC (ears)

➡️PER RECTUM (anus)

➡️INHALATION 

➡️SUBLINGUAL (under the tongue)

➡️BUCCAL (Cheeks)

➡️INTRADERMAL

➡️SUBCUTANEOUS

➡️INTRAMUSCULAR

➡️INTRA THECAL

And many more. 

The reason for this is, they are most effective when given through those routes. 

➡️Not all liquids are given ORALLY (mouth) and not all tablets are best swallowed. 

➡️When giving medicines to kids, please refrain from calling them candies. 

‼️ TIP: If you are having a hard time giving medications, especially those that taste bitter, it is best to give liquid ones through the syringe, position them upright and give medicine by the sides of the mouth. This is to prevent aspiration. PLEASE DO NOT PINCH THEIR NOSES. 

Also, if you are giving two medicines or more, observe spacing to promote optimum results.

This is quite crucial as I have seen a lot not following this. 

Did you notice that your medicine bottles are dark colored? It is because there are components that are sensitive to light. So it means you need to store them away from light. 

If your medicines are opened, you need to store them inside the fridge, NOT FREEZER and should follow certain temperature. 

If you have vaccines, you also need to place them INSIDE THE FREEZER for it's contents to remain potent. 

Do not store medicines beside your chemicals and should be always away from children's reach. 

Store them in a cool, dry place. If your bathroom is always moist, do not put your medicine cabinet there.

This is the right time the medicines should be given. The reason is, to achieve its full effectivity. 

What you will see in the doctor's orders are:

➡️OD (once a day) 8am or 8pm

➡️BID (twice a day) 8am and 8pm

➡️TID (three times a day) 8am -12noon-8pm

➡️QID (four times a day) 8am-12noon-4pm-8pm

Q means EVERY

➡️Q2 (every 2 hours)

➡️Q4 (every 4 hours)

➡️Q6 (every 6 hours)

➡️Q8 and so on. 

➡️Notes:

BID and Q12 are different. The former follows 8am and 8pm schedule while Q12 follows 12 hour timing. If medicine is started at 2am, the next dose should be 12hours after the last dose which is 2pm. Usually, medicines that are given by Q are antibiotics, fever medications, and pain relievers. Why? Because of their half-life. 

There are also medicines that should be given PRE and POST PRANDIAL (before and after meals). Premeals medications are usually diabetic medications and gastro medicines. Post meals, medications are usually antibiotics.

But then again, please clarify everything with your health care professionals. ALWAYS.