How do I receive medication?
Medication will be on the care recipient's prescription. Depending on arrangement you might be expected to collect from the pharmacy or in some cases the medication will be brought to the property. This will all be documented in the care plan.
What do I do when I receive medication to administer?
On receipt of all medications, you must notify the care management team straight away
After letting the care management team know you must check and sign medications onto the Medication Administrator Record (MAR Chart) and will need to visually check for correct dosage levels in Modular Dosage Systems (MDS) and blister packs. Any errors found at this point are to be flagged to the care management team and discussed with the pharmacist and possibly sent back for re-dispensing.
How do I store medication?
Medication should be stored in the Care Recipient's own home. The location of where the medication is stored can be found in the Care Plan. All medication must be stored in compliance with the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain’s publication “The Handling of Medicines in Social Care”.
Please report any suspected tampering with blister packs to the office immediately, as these medications could have been exposed to air and administering them could risk your care recipients' health and safety.
Each medication will be labelled as the following:
Full name of medication
Duration
Start date
Form
Route
Dosage
Control category
Storage
Level of support
Further information
All medication must be stored in the containers that the pharmacist dispensed it in.
All medication must be fully labelled with:
Name of Medication
Name of Medication
Strength of dose
Name of Care Recipient
Quantity and date dispensed
Name of supplier
Expiry date
Medication in gas form (e.g. oxygen) must be stored in an area designated as no smoking. Cylinders should be in a dry, well-ventilated place and chained appropriately, at least 5ft from electrical appliances.
All opened liquid medication should have the date of opening written on the box.
It is best practice that if medication requires refrigeration; it is to be stored separately from where food is also stored. However, if this is needed, you can store the medication within the same fridge, ensuring that it is kept in a sealed container to avoid cross-contamination. In a shared environment, this container should be lockable.