      |
Helping Your Doctor Help You! Current Medication Lists
by: Judy Schmieder, SGCMH RN Does your healthcare provider know all the medications you are taking including herbal remedies and vitamins? It is extremely important to tell your healthcare providers about all medications you are taking. Medication errors are a primary cause of complications in healthcare. By keeping an accurate medication list and taking all medication bottles with you to a doctor’s visit, emergency room visit, or inpatient visit can: • Reduce confusion and save time. It helps you remember your medications. • Improve communication between you and your healthcare providers. • Improve Medication Safety. Medication interactions and duplicates can be detected and corrected. Please include the following items on your medication list: • Prescription medications • Eye drops • Inhalers/Nebulizers • Oxygen • Creams/ointments • Patches that contain medication • Contraceptives • Over-the-counter medications (for example: Tylenol, Motrin/Ibuprofen, laxatives, vitamins, Aspirin, antacids, etc) • Dietary and herbal supplements (for example: Gingko Biloba, Green tea, etc). Some herbal supplements can interact with your prescription medications. Not telling your healthcare providers about these supplements may cause undesirable adverse reactions for you. Do you visit more than one healthcare provider: primary care physician, cardiologist, allergy doctor, neurologist, etc? If the answer to this question is yes; please remember to take your medication list and/or medication bottles to every visit. It is imperative to update your medication list either during or after each visit. Should someone else know what medications you are taking? Yes, it is recommended that the person listed as your emergency contact person have a current list of your home medications. This will help your healthcare provider care for you better in the event of an emergency. So, by sharing your up-to-date medication list and/or medication bottles with your healthcare providers – you are helping them take better care of you. |
|||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
