How to avoid medicine missteps
Bad advice is just one reason behind medicine mistakes. You might miss a dose or take it with food or drink instead of on an empty stomach. Other reasons include confusion between similar-sounding medications, poor handwriting on prescriptions, and incomplete information about your allergies. To make sure you get the right medicine in the right dose:
Give the pharmacy your complete history
Include a list of drugs, vitamins, and other dietary supplements you’re taking and information about medical conditions, allergies, and adverse reactions. Some drugstores let you create a secure profile online that you can update with new information.
Understand how to take medicine
Does it matter whether it’s in the morning or at bedtime; or before, during, or after a meal? Can you crush or chew it? Should you avoid any foods, beverages, other drugs or supplements, or activities while on the medicine?
Ask what happens if you miss a dose or take too much. If too much time passes, do you double up or wait? If you suspect an overdose, should you go to the hospital?
Know the side effects
Do any problems warrant immediate attention?
Ask whether you can stop once you feel better
With some drugs, notably antibiotics, if you cut the regimen short, the bacteria might survive and cause the infection to recur.
Know the time frame
Does “three times a day” mean during waking hours or during a 24-hour period?
Store medications properly
In general, select a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight. A bathroom medicine cabinet isn’t ideal because of moisture and heat, which can cause some drugs to break down. If you store pills above a sink, they could fall down the drain. Keep refrigerated medications out of the door because of temperature variations.
Remove roadblocks
Sometimes, difficulty opening the bottle, illegible instructions, and bad taste are reasons people don’t take their drugs. Ask for an easy-open bottle, large-print labels, or special flavoring.
