The doctor has prescribed a medication and you have bought it from the pharmacy after submitting the prescription. The time is right for you to take the medication.
Make sure never to take your medication in the dark because the chances of taking the wrong medication or an incorrect dosage will be more, stresses Specialist Physician Dr. Chamari Lochana Weeraratne.
It is also essential that you read the label on the medication and understand the instructions, says this Senior Lecturer at the Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Colombo, explaining that it will state clearly: '
- Amount of the active ingredient. Eg. Chlorpheniramine maleate 2 mg
- Purpose. Eg. antihistamine
- Uses and indications. Eg. for allergies, sneezing and runny nose
- Warnings. Eg. those who should not take the medication such as expectant mothers or those with kidney or liver diseases, whether you need to consult a doctor or seek the advice of a pharmacist, the side-effects and when you should stop the medication
- Directions. Eg. number of doses, the amount that should be taken for one dose, preparation of the medication
- Other information. Eg. How to store the medication and if special measures are needed before you take the medication
- Inactive ingredients. Eg. salt, alcohol, colouring etc
- Dates of manufacture and expiry. Eg. though the expiry may be several years later, how soon you need to discard the medication after opening etc
It is important to use the measuring device provided with liquid medicines to prevent taking a wrong dose, it is learnt. This is especially important when giving liquid medicines to infants and small children.
If it is a liquid medication, make sure to shake the bottle well.
When pouring it into the measuring device cover the label of the bottle with your palm so that it does not spill on it, defacing the instructions. After dispensing the medication, wipe not only the mouth of the bottle but also the outside of the stopper with a clean cloth, she says.
In a situation where several medications need to be taken at the same time, one medication should be taken, put away and only then the next taken to prevent a mix-up or the same medication being taken twice, MediScene understands.
“Although we take medications to overcome an illness, sometimes there is an unexpected result. These are called side effects,” says Dr. Weeraratne citing a turn for the worse; severe tiredness; constipation; diarrhoea; loss of appetite; nausea and vomiting; headache; forgetfulness; incontinence; being prone to falls; weakness; being drowsy, falling into a deep sleep or inability to sleep; a feeling of anxiety; feeling dizzy or faintish; or developing patches, sores or bumps.
People who take many medications a day, those who have food allergies, infants and small children, women who are breastfeeding and those with other health issues may be more prone than others to side effects, MediScene understands.
Those with asthma, abnormal bleeding tendencies, immunity disorders, mental or thyroid disorders, diabetes, epilepsy, heart, kidney or liver disease, hypertension, glaucoma or prostate may be more vulnerable.
It is important to query from your doctor what you should do if you develop side effects, says Dr. Weeraratne, and whether a blood or any other test is required before you begin a medication.
Giving a few tips, she says that you should not take any multivitamin or iron tablets with milk and never should you dissolve any medication in a warm liquid unless specified by your doctor. You should also not take alcohol and medication at the same time.
Be sure to consult only a qualified doctor, she urges, while ensuring that he/she takes time to examine you and also give clear answers to any queries you may have. The same principle should apply to your pharmacist, who should be qualified to dispense the medication and guide you.
Some dos and don’ts when using antibiotics
Antibiotics are drugs which can control or destroy bacteria, says Dr. Weeraratne, explaining that they can only fight illnesses brought about by bacteria and not viruses which are commonly responsible for fever, cough, sore throat and ear infections.
Antibiotics have revolutionized the treatment of many deadly diseases such as tuberculosis and helped people to live longer. But, she cautions, many people misuse antibiotics, taking them whenever there is a sneeze, sniffle or body ache.
“Not only do people buy antibiotics over-the-counter and medicate themselves, they sometimes compel or plead with their doctor to prescribe them when there is no need,” she said.
This results not only in wastage of money and no health benefit but also in the destruction of good bacteria in your body, facilitating the spread of bad bacteria and vulnerability to diseases caused by them.
Here are some of the don’ts when a doctor decides to prescribe an antibiotic to you:
- Don’t take a lower dosage than ordered. If two capsules should be taken at a time, don’t take only one. If 5 ml is to be taken don’t reduce it to 2-3 ml.
- Don’t take fewer doses than ordered. If the medication should be taken three times a day, don’t take it once or twice.
- Don’t forget the time duration between doses. If the medication should be taken thrice a day, it should be spread over the time period you are awake – 6 a.m., 2 p.m. and 10 p.m. If the doses are brought closer, then the body does not get the medication as it should to fight the disease.
- Don’t stop the medication as soon as you feel better. The moment a cough goes off or the temperature comes down, people stop their drugs, but it must be remembered that though the symptoms may cease, the bacteria may be lurking in your body. Continue the drug for the number of days, three, five or seven, as prescribed.
- Don’t ever take any antibiotics left over from a previous prescription and don’t give anyone else the drugs prescribed to you, however similar the symptoms may seem.
When you misuse antibiotics, the chances are that your body will not react to antibiotics by becoming immune to them, allowing bacteria to create havoc in your system, making you very ill.
Meanwhile, if you are aware that you are allergic to an antibiotic (such as penicillin), you need to keep your doctor informed. Otherwise be conscious whether you are developing an allergy to a new antibiotic by being alert to a difficulty in breathing, chest tightening or pain, breaking out in a rash or itching or both, swelling of lips, fever, diarrhoea or feeling dizzy or faintish.
Whenever giving antibiotics to a child, you must be on the look out for such signs of an allergy, because it can be fatal, she adds.
Don’t forget
- If you are undergoing emergency treatment, an operation or even extracting a tooth, you need to inform your doctor, surgeon or dentist about the medications you are on.
- If you are on long-term medication, you should store adequate stocks to prevent a disruption in the treatment.
- Don’t stop any long-term medication for such diseases as diabetes, hypertension, asthma, epilepsy or mental illness at will, without the specific permission of the doctor.
- Whenever you leave home on a long journey take the medications you are on packed securely and make sure to take the prescription along so that you can buy more if you run short.
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