Medication List Alternatives
It is very important that all of your providers know all of the medications that you are taking. You must be able to provide that information rather than relying on your provider. The best way to do this is to create a medication list.
At a minimum, a medication list must include:
the name of the medication
the dose of the medication
how often you take the medication
The dose of the medication must almost always include a number of milligrams or other units. Very few medications only come in one size of dose, so saying “1 pill twice a day” is not adequate.
Although a medication list that you create yourself is the most accurate and most comprehensive, there are many other ways that can be used to provide a list of medications to your provider, such as:
a printed or handwritten medication list that you created
a medication list from your doctor’s office notes
a medication list from your last hospital or ER visit
a medication list on your phone
memory
your pill bottles
pictures of your pill bottles
pharmacy paperwork
healthcare portal
a Google document
an email
a combination of these
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Below is a description of each method along with the pros and cons of using that method.
A printed medication list that you created
Patients create a list as a file on their computer which they can easily update and print out.
Pros:
Can be most accurate and up-to-date
Can include over-the-counter medications, short-term medications, vitamins, supplements and medications from other providers which might not be included on other lists or healthcare portals
Multiple copies can be printed to give to trusted relatives or friends
Can be easily photocopied
Cons:
Care must be taken to make sure the information is complete and accurate
Requires access to a printer
A handwritten list
Patients write their list on notebook paper or a 3x5 card
Pros:
Can be most accurate and up-to-date
Can include over-the-counter medications, short-term medications, vitamins, supplements and medications from other providers which might not be included on other lists or healthcare portals
Can be easily photocopied
Can be kept on a 3x5 card in a wallet or purse
Cons:
Harder to update than a printed list
Harder to have multiple copies than a printed list
More difficult to reconstruct if it is lost
May not be returned after being given to a provider (frequently occurs when a list is handed to a paramedic during an emergency)
Handwriting can be hard to read, even for the person who wrote it when they are trying to read long names of unfamiliar medications
A printed medication list from your doctor’s office notes or hospital or ER discharge papers
Patients receive a copy of their medication list when at the end of a medical encounter.
Pros:
Routinely provided to you
Easy to read
Medication names, dosages and frequency are usually correct
Cons:
Can quickly become outdated
Will not include over-the-counter medications, supplements, or medications from other providers if you do not tell your provider about them
A medication list that could be printed on one page is often spread out over multiple pages
Less easy to copy
A medication list on your phone
Patients create a note on their phone with a list of their medications.
Pros:
Readily available
Can be kept updated
Cons:
Cannot be photocopied
You may have to hand your provider your phone
Phone batteries die
Memory
Patients recite their medications from memory.
Pros:
Readily available
There are other benefits to being engaged enough to know your medications this well
Cons:
It is difficult to remember the details of all of your medications
Medication names can be difficult
This method only works well with a short list of medications
Doesn’t work when you are incapacitated
Pill bottles
Patients bring a grocery sack or shoebox full of their pill bottles.
Pros:
All the information is there
Easy to take quickly when in a hurry
Cons:
Transporting medications increases the risk of them getting lost
Pill bottles of medications that are no longer taken can get mixed in and lead to confusion
Some medications are not in pill bottles (inhalers, creams, insulin, etc)
Some medications get separated from their labels (tubes of creams that came in boxes)
Pictures of your pill bottles
Patients take pictures of their pill bottles on their phones.
Pros:
All the information is there
Can be sent by friends or relatives after the provider asks for the information (good in emergencies)
No risk of losing pill bottles
Cons:
Since pill bottles are round, some information may not be included in the picture
Cell phone service may be spotty
Phone batteries die
Pictures may be hard to find on your phone if they were taken on an earlier date
Pharmacy paperwork
Patients bring the drug information paperwork they received from the pharmacy when they picked up their prescriptions.
Pros:
All the information is there
A good way to include short-term medications, such as antibiotics, that are not on your medication list
Cons:
There is a separate piece of paper for each medication
Harder to photocopy
Doesn’t include non-prescription medications
Refills from mail order pharmacies may not include this information
Healthcare portal
Patients sign up for access to the healthcare portals provided by their providers.
Pros:
An accurate and updated list of the medications that the healthcare system using that portal is aware of
Cons:
May not contain medications from providers outside of that healthcare system
Cell service can be spotty
Phone batteries die
Healthcare portals may be temporarily offline
Cannot be photocopies
You may have to hand your phone to your provider
The process of signing up for access to a portal is not quick so it must be done before the information is needed
A Google document or email
Patients create a Google document or email themselves a list.
Pros:
Readily available from any device, even if your phone battery is dead
Can be easily updated
Can be transmitted electronically to your provider (not as easily as a piece of paper)
The list can be printed just as if it had been created as a regular computer file
Cons:
Information security risk
Cannot be photocopied
You may have to hand your phone to your provider
Combinations
Patients use one of the methods above for their main medication list (such as a printed or handwritten list or a list on their phone) and supplement it by bringing in pill bottles or pharmacy information for short-term medications or new medications they have not had time to include in their list.
Pros:
A printed or handwritten medication list doesn’t have to be updated to include short-term medications
Cons:
Having two separate lists increases the risk of errors, such as one list being lost, ignored, etc.