medication reminder saved moms life

medication reminder saved moms life

MED-Q Medication Reminder saved Moms life

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How can a  Medication Reminder saved Moms life?

The general population has become accustom to the thought that our  loved ones are getting older.  Furthermore, seniors are taking more and more prescription medications as well as supplements every day.  To sum up, polypharmacy leads to many possible health hazards.  For example,  dangerous negative prescription interactions.  Furthermore, this applies to over-the -counter pills.  Be sure to read the medication management tip below.  In conclusion, these tips may help save your loved one’s life..

medication reminder saved moms life
medication reminder

A Medication Reminder is the first step in Medication Management

  • The world Health organization claims that over 90 percent of seniors make regular medication mistakes.  For example, not taking you pills at the right times.  Another example, double or triple dosing.  Forgetting pills is no small problem.  In fact, in the US (2015 Data) over 100 thousand people died from medication errors.  Hence, a smart medication reminder with alarm is a vital tool.  The new pill boxes have flashing guides and programmable reminders.  Many have the ability to notify a caregiver if the pills are not taken.  These pill boxes range in price for 50 dollars up to thousands.

Ask the Health Care Professional if doses are age-appropriate.

  • Why is this important?  The human body will metabolize various drugs differently as we age   Seniors  men and women are more sensitive to many new drugs.  This being said, many are less sensitive to meds.   To illustrate, seniors have a much higher risk of experiencing negative side effects.   Hence, always check and re-check with your health Care Professional to make sure that the dosage  is age-appropriate.  To sum up, it’s always advisable to start with a lower dose and increase the dosage if needed.

Sponsored By MED-Q Medication Compliance System

Med-Q Medication reminder with triple alarms is a Caregiver’s best friend

 Be aware of medications deemed unsafe for seniors.

  • The Beers Criteria for Potentially Inappropriate Medication Use in Older Adults,  is a great source of information.  It was created by the American Geriatric Society.  First of all, it includes a listing of medications that seniors ought to stay away from or use with extreme caution..  Second of all, many meds will have a higher risk of negative side effects or interactions.  This being said, many others are simply less effective for the elderly.  For example,  sedatives like diazepam (Valium), are on the “avoid for certain conditions” lis.  Again, this is because senior men and women can have a heightened sensitivity to these meds.   In conclusion, always question the pharmacist if any of your loved one’s medications are on the caution list.  Again ask if you should be concerned.

Have a written medications list with you.

  • If you are going to the doctor, take your list of prescription medications and supplements with.  First, the list should also include any over-the-counter drugs (OTC) as well as any herbal supplements.  Give the list  to the  doctor, or to a pharmacist. The more information the health care provider has, the better they can pinpoint any potential negative side effect interactions.

Be sure to also check the prescriber’s behavior the new Prescriber Checkup

  • The shocking truth,  Medicare may not monitor prescription safety as close as people think they do.  The data has been  noted in a ProPublica report. .  The problem is huge,  First of all, in 2012  health-care professionals wrote more than 510 Thousand scripts for [carisoprodol to patients over the age of 64.  The drug that was removed from the European market in 2008.  Furthermore, the drug has been on Beers caution list forever 10 years..  if you would like additional information about the drugs prescribed in your area, check ProPublica’s online Prescriber Checkup tool.

Take extra care in monitoring medication  in the cognitively impaired.

  • Keep your eyes open.  For example,  Mom’s Medication Reminder still has pills in it from days before. First, is the senior confusion about their medications.  Second, have they been  diagnosed with cognitive impairment.  For example, Alzheimer’s disease, or another kind of dementia.  If this is the case, never let them to manage or take their own life saving prescription medications. If there is tracking issues,  medication reminder systems always helpful.  A smart Medication reminder like the MED-Q Smart pill box has some great features.  Flashing LITE-BOX shows them which pills to take,.  These new smart pillboxes are a way of delaying the inevitable.

The best tip is a  Medication Reminder

  • For example,  dangerous negative prescription interactions.  Furthermore, this applies to over-the -counter pills.  Be sure to read the medication management tip below.  In conclusion, these tips may help save your loved one’s life..

If you can’t remember whether you took your medication, what do you do?

What happens if you don’t remember if you took your medications?  When one is not sure if you took a pill, never, ever just take another dose yet. What could happen if you double dose?  If someone ingests an additional dose, the consequences can be deadly. In fact, an extra dose can raise the risk of harmful effects. Check your pill organizer, count the remaining pills in the bottle, or review the instructions that came with your prescription to find specific guidance. 

doctorHealth care profsionals are in agreement, “For most medications, it is safer to accidentally miss a single dose than to double dose” . Keep in mind that the pill/dosing guidelines vary drastically depending on the medication.  For example, it is different for  blood thinners or something like birth control.), it is always best to double-check with a professional.  If in doubt, call the local pharmacy you got the prescription filled.  Also, call e the America’s Poison Centers at 800-222-1222 .  This can help if you are concerned about over dosing. 

For further guidance, consult I can’t remember whether I took my medication, what do I do? on Medical News Today. To help prevent confusion in the future, you can implement some 9 Simple Strategies for Remembering To Take Your Medication or read the Why You Shouldn’t Skip Your Medication guide on WebMD.
 
If you are missing doses consistently, a few strategies can help get your routine back on track:
  • Use a weekly pillbox: These old fashion pill holders can be useful.   They show a quick visual cue to show which days  doses have been taken.
  • Use a Digital Pill Reminder: Medication reminders, like the Med-Q pill Box. have flashing guides.  These alarmed reminders help preventing over dosing. 
  • Try to do Habit stacking: Match up your daily pill-taking with a non-negotiable daily habit.  For example, your first cup of coffee or brushing yourhair.
  • Set electronic reminders: Use persistent reminder apps, alarm clocks, or simple smart phone alarm reminders.

What to do if Unsure?

The worry about over doing is real.  When unsure whether the dose has been taken, the best thing to do is speak with your health care provider or even your pharmacist. They will  advise you on the best course of action based on ythe specific medication. that is over dosed.

pill box for seniors

If you take oral tablets or capsules, you can count how many pills you have left. If you know when you started taking the pills out of that prescription bottle, this could help you determine whether you’ve taken your dose for that day.

Sometimes, when you haven’t taken your medication, there may still be time to take that dose. However, this could depend on the drug and dosing schedule.

Although in some cases, if it’s almost time to take your next dose, your doctor may recommend skipping the missed dose and taking your next dose at its regular time. Never take two doses at once to make up for a missed dose as doing so could raise your risk of side effects.

What happens if you accidentally take your medication twice?

Do not take more of a drug than your doctor prescribes. While serious side effects may be rare, for some medications, taking more than the recommended amount may lead to harmful effects or overdose. Some of the most dangerous medications to double-dose include:

  • heart maintenece medications
  • ADHD drugs, for example “Adderall”
  • medications for Type 1 Diabetes
  • prescription narcotic pain pills
  • psychiatric medications , for example “Wellbutrin.”

If you have any doubt, act quickly. 

Fist of all, contact your doctor right away.  Let them know you may have accidentally taken two doses or three doses of your daily medication. They will offer up advice.  The Healthcare profesional can often advise of what steps to take.  Also, they will let you know about symptoms to watch out for.

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