Pandemic Parenting: Medication Safety During the Holidays (and Beyond)
距离冬季假期仅几天之遥，我们中的许多人都准备与我们最喜欢的人团聚。无论是大家庭还是亲密的朋友，都可以肯定地说这是一个非常激动人心的时刻。在我们的上一篇文章中，我们在与他人玩耍或旅行时简要介绍了心理健康的注意事项。今天，让我们讨论使用精神病药物采取的有用技巧和预防措施。这些准则也可以应用于任何类型的药物，处方或柜台以及一年中的时间。
In most cases, we know that prescription medications should be kept in the labeled bottle the pharmacy provides so that it’s easy to check the dosing and when to take them. However, doctors occasionally see situations where patients will re-use an old bottle from a previous refill and put the new medication inside. This can be dangerous, as the label often tells you when those specific pills expire, your current dose and instructions, and how many refills you have left, along with the prescription ID number for your pharmacy. If any of those things are changed by your doctor, it’s easy to forget and make mistakes. That’s also why it’s very important to always throw away old bottles and only keep the most current one. This goes double for any medications you’ve had for more than one year. Once medications are past their expiration date, taking them may result in lack of effect or cause side effects and unintended health problems. It doesn’t matter if the bottle is kept closed or not–the risk is always there.
同样，即使在旅行时，也不建议将不同的药物放入同一瓶中。许多药丸，尤其是处方药，具有相同的颜色，大小和形状。即使是同样的药物在制造商之间看起来也有所不同，这在服用仿制药时通常是这种情况。除非您对药丸非常熟悉，否则只服用一种，最好将所有东西分开。唯一的例外是，如果您使用的是用白天或am/pm分离器的药盒，则可以提前填充。即使那样，总是有错误的空间。此外，特别是使用受控药物，例如ADHD的刺激剂，在机场使用未标记的容器是一个坏主意。如果搜索行李，您可能会遇到麻烦。如果没有适当的文档 - 即带有您和医生的信息或医生的签名信的标有瓶子，则可以将受控物质跨州列为犯罪。至少，您的药物可以被没收，否则您将被阻止并且不允许登机。
If your holiday plans are to stay at home and play host to others, there are other concerns. It’s best not to speak openly about the medications you or your child are taking currently. Unfortunately, there have been cases where guests, contract workers, or employees have stolen prescription medications from a house to misuse or sell. All were trusted by the person they stole from. At best, it’s a major inconvenience for you or your child, as many doctor’s offices do not do early refills and insurance companies will refuse to cover the cost of replacing it. With controlled substances, a police report or some other type of documentation may also be needed to get a new prescription. At worst, the person who steals it abuses the medication while in your home and ends up hurting themselves or someone else.
Additionally, “pill parties” have been a trend among teenagers and young adults. Partygoers bring bottles of medications from home and mix everything into a large bowl before taking several of them randomly. There have been cases of serious physical harm and even death as a result. Though rare, it’s possible you could be held partly liable if pills were taken from your house and are traced back to you. While not common, it is also possible for younger children to mistaken medications or vitamins for candy, especially if they are in gummy or chewable forms, and end up very sick. To avoid accidental or intentional misuse, always keep your medications in a designated drawer or cupboard where it can’t be easily reached by children. Again, make sure to use the bottles you get from the pharmacy, as they are designed to minimize access to children. For controlled substances, it might even be worth considering a locked cabinet.
While these precautions might seem a bit much, it’s better to prevent any potential situations than to deal with the negative consequences. If not all of them apply to you or your family, then stick to the ones that make sense. However, keeping them in mind will ensure a safe and relaxing holiday season for everyone involved.
Written by: Jennifer Yen, MD