• Discuss and provide training on the use and reason for the medication.
• Teach and provide training on how and when to take or give the medication.
• Ask questions and monitor your medication list to determine if the medication is working to provide comfort.
• Review your current medication supply and assist in obtaining medications as needed.
• Ask to see all medications you are taking, including prescriptions, supplements, eye or ear drops, and over the counter medication.

• Keep all medications out of the reach of adults, who are unable to take them safely, children, and pets.
• Do not share medications with anyone else, crush pills without first checking with your Gulfside nurse, or take/ give more than the amount of medicine ordered.
• Read the label before taking/giving the medicine.
• Make sure the medicine is taken or given just as it is ordered.
• Take or give routine medication on a regular schedule.
• Use “break-through” or “in-between” medicine for the reason and the times ordered as needed, according to the prescription.
• Keep a written schedule and record of when and how often the medication is given.
• Try a medication box to help keep track of what medications you should be taking and when.

• You have any questions or doubts about your medications.
• The medication does not seem to be working to manage your pain or symptoms, or if there are any side effects.
• You are unable to take or give them as ordered due to difficulty swallowing, nausea, or vomiting.
• You are considering stopping, starting, or changing a medication. Your nurse can work with your medical provider to help you do this safely.

When you are admitted to Gulfside’s care, the nurse will discuss and explain the medication and pharmacy process. Your hospice nurse will contact your medical provider for new prescriptions as needed. Please let your hospice nurse know when your medication supply gets low. Under most circumstances, medications will be delivered to your home. When using any pharmacy, please take a moment to look over your medications carefully when a prescription is filled. Check to make sure your name is on each medication container. Contact your Gulfside Hospice nurse if you have any questions about any medication’s appearance, purpose, or directions for use.

When a hospice patient no longer has a need for a medication for any reason (discontinuation, changes in medication, etc.), it is important that the medication is disposed of properly. Your nursing team can instruct you in the proper methods of medication disposal. Nurses and other care team members are not allowed to accept returned medication and transport in their vehicle.

Expired or unneeded prescription and over-the-counter medications from households should never be disposed of by flushing them down the toilet or a drain. Although this method of disposal prevents accidental ingestion, it can cause contamination to Florida’s aquatic environment because wastewater treatment systems are not designed to remove many of these medications.

Here are the steps to disposing of medications:

1. Keep the medications in the original container. This will help identify the contents if they are accidentally ingested.
2. Mark out your name and prescription number for safety so that they are illegible.
3. For pills: add some water or soda to the container to start dissolving them. For liquids: add something inedible, like cat litter, dirt, or cayenne pepper to the container.
4. Close the lid and secure with duct or packing tape.
5. Place the bottle(s) inside an opaque (non-see-through) container like a coffee can or plastic laundry bottle. 
6. Tape that container closed.
7. Hide the container in the trash. Do not put it in the recycle bin.