Keeping a medication list
for a parent you look after.
One list, kept current, that says what they take, how much, when, and what it is for. Tick each dose as it is given. Keep it where every carer can see it, and bring it to every appointment. Most medicine mix-ups come from two lists that disagree.
Why one list, and why current
A parent on several medicines usually has several lists: the pharmacy label, the hospital discharge letter, the note on the fridge, and what is actually in the dosette box. When they disagree, a dose is missed or doubled. The fix is a single list that everyone updates, and a habit of changing it the day a prescription changes.
What the list needs
- The name as it appears on the box, and the strength.
- The dose and the times. "One 5 mg tablet, morning and evening" rather than "twice a day".
- What it is for, in your own words. It helps the next carer, and it helps when a clinician asks "and why is she on that?"
- Who prescribed it and when, so a review can be asked for.
- Anything bought over the counter: painkillers, vitamins, sleep aids. These are the ones doctors most often do not know about.
- Allergies and reactions, at the top, every time.
Tick the doses
A list says what should happen. A tick says what did. When two people share the care, a dose tick is the only way the second person knows the first one gave the morning tablets. Missed doses are worth recording too; a pattern of missed evening doses is something a doctor can act on.
Sharing it with the people who help
Decide who needs to see everything and who needs to see only the medicines. A sibling who shares the caring needs the whole record. A visiting carer or a sitter needs the medicines, the allergies and a note for the day, and nothing else. Whatever you use, make sure you can take that access away when the arrangement ends.
Where Biojrnl fits
In Biojrnl a parent has their own managed profile inside your account (Family: you plus three profiles; Care: you plus nine). Their medicines live there with the dose and the times, doses are ticked as given, and reminders can be set. A co-manager, such as a sibling, can see and edit everything on that profile until you remove them. A guest pass gives a carer only what you choose, for 12 hours, 7 days, 30 days or until you remove it; a guest always sees allergies and conditions, never the home address, insurance or ID numbers. The profile keeps an activity log of who did what, and a handover note where you leave the day's instructions and the carer replies. The guest uses the free app. See the medications and sharing screens and the Family and Care plans.
Asked most often.
How often should I update a parent's medication list?
The day anything changes: a new prescription, a dose change, a medicine stopped, or a new over-the-counter habit. A list that is a month out of date is the one that causes a mix-up at the pharmacy or the hospital.
Should over-the-counter medicines be on the list?
Yes, every one, including vitamins and herbal remedies. They interact with prescribed medicines and clinicians rarely hear about them unless they are written down.
What should a visiting carer be able to see?
The medicines and their times, the allergies and conditions, and today's note. Not the whole history, and not the paperwork. Give that access for the days they are coming and take it back afterwards.
Yours to keep,
in your pocket.
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