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April 24, 2012 More AWARxE News »Safety Tips for Giving Medications to Children
Get Informed on Medication Safety for Children
Be involved in your child's health care. Children are not small adults. Recent studies show the potential for adverse drug events was three times higher in children. Your pediatrician or family physician prescribes medications, but as a parent, guardian, or daycare provider, you are the person who purchases and/or administers drugs to children in your care.
Become AWARxE! Learn how to correctly administer medications to children in your care, and how to avoid errors that can lead to serious injury or death. Safety tips to help you avoid errors when giving medications to children follow.
When the doctor prescribes medication for your child
- Take part in all decisions regarding your child's health. Ask questions about all medications prescribed for your child. Don't be shy – ask to have any questions or concerns answered or explained.
- Tell the physician if you are giving your child non-prescription medications, vitamins, herbals, or other dietary supplements. Take a complete list of all drugs and supplements you are giving to your child with you to your doctor's appointment.
- Tell your physician about any allergies your child may have now or had in the past.
- Make sure you can read the prescription before leaving the physician’s office. If you cannot, the pharmacist may not be able to either. Ask the doctor to print the name of the drug. Know the name of your child's doctor. Also, ask the doctor to print his or her name.
When picking up a medication for your child
- Tell the pharmacist if you are giving your child non-prescription medications, vitamins, herbals, or other dietary supplements. Take a complete list of all drugs and supplements you are giving to your child with you to your pharmacy.
- Tell your pharmacist about any allergies your child may have now or had in the past.
- Look at the label when you pick up your child's medication. If you do not understand everything on the label, ask your pharmacist to explain the label to you.
- Ask your pharmacist to give you printed patient information on the medication prescribed for your child. If you do not understand the patient information, ask your pharmacist for clarification or call your doctor.
- Ask your pharmacist how to measure liquid medicine. Pharmacists can show you how to use a marked syringe or a dosing spoon for measuring liquid medications. Never use a teaspoon or tablespoon at home as it is not accurate enough for measuring medications.
- Look at the medication label and contents if it is a refill. If the medication looks different from the pills your child was taking, tell your pharmacist immediately.
- Count the pills you are given and make sure the number matches the amount indicated on the label – this is especially important with controlled substances such as pain pills. If you are to receive a 10-day supply of a drug to be taken once a day, for example, make sure there are 10 pills.
At home, when giving medication to your child
- Report any problems your child may be having with the medication. If the child seems to be having a reaction to the medication, call your pharmacist or doctor immediately.
- If your child misses a dose or takes more medication than recommended, call your doctor or pharmacist for instructions
- Do not split or crush medications for your child unless your doctor or pharmacist has instructed you to do so.
- Do not give medications prescribed for one of your children to another child in your family. Physicians must consider weight and age when prescribing medications for children. Other factors such as allergies can cause serious problems if a child receives a drug not prescribed for him or her.
- Provide your daycare or school with thorough instructions for administering medications to your child. Ask the daycare provider to repeat instructions to you and to record when and how medications have been given. Provide thorough instructions to your child's school, if the child must have medications during the school day.
- If your child swallows medication, prescription or non-prescription, that is not prescribed for him or her, call the poison control center immediately. Call 800/222-1222 from anywhere in the United States to be connected to a poison control center.
Follow medication safety tips
- Store your child’s medications as instructed by the pharmacist and keep them in their original containers. Place them in a safe place away from heat, moisture or freezing temperatures, and away from where food is stored. The bathroom cabinet is not the best place for medications. Safe places might be in a linen closet or dresser drawer. Be sure to store them out of sight and reach of children. You may want to lock your medications in a cupboard or a medicine safe, especially to avoid unintentional use by your child or misuse by family or visitors to your home.
- Keep all medications out of reach of children. Do not believe a safety cap will keep children from opening the medication bottle.
- Dispose of medications that are expired or unwanted. Medications are considered expired if they are one year from the date the prescription is filled, unless otherwise noted. Do not discard medications where small children or pets can find them. See our Medication Disposal section for more information on how to do this properly.
- If your child takes multiple medications, create a medication record that lists each medication, strength, dose, and the prescribing doctor. Keep the record with you in your purse or wallet. Particularly, take your child’s medication record with you to doctor's appointments and to your pharmacy when you are picking up medications for your child. The list will remind you of all of the medications your child is taking and help the doctor and pharmacist manage your child’s drugs appropriately.
